


Undertale: Encoded

by RainingJewel



Category: Undertale (Video Game), Undertale AUs - Fandom
Genre: Alternate Universe - Dreamtale (Undertale), Alternate Universe - Underfell (Undertale), Alternate Universe - Underswap (Undertale), LustGold (Undertale), Multi, Multiverse, Underfell Sans (Undertale), Underswap Papyrus (Undertale), Underswap Sans (Undertale), Undertale Multiverse
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-03-19
Updated: 2020-10-20
Packaged: 2021-02-28 23:09:19
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 36
Words: 175,675
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23215306
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RainingJewel/pseuds/RainingJewel
Summary: In a world of countless AUs, two, in particular, impact them significantly more than others. Ink and Error, the Inspiration and the Destroyer. But what happens when a third comes in with the ability to undo their work? Or, better yet, support them?
Comments: 23
Kudos: 73





	1. Chapter 1 - Business As Usual?

**Author's Note:**

> This is my first time really writing an AU, especially a multiverse, and I did my best with the characters. If something feels off, let me know, and I'll let you know if it was deliberate or not.

# Chapter 1 – Business as Usual?

Red and orange lasers lit up the area around Snowdin Forest. Birds that were stuck underground were flying away in panic, trying to not get blasted by the powerful forces at work. On the ground, Error held a smirk as his strings were completely wrapped around Blueberry, controlling him from his soul outward. He looked like he was panicked, desperately trying to stop but he couldn’t. His attacks lashed out against his brother, Papyrus and his friend, Ink. Error’s black blasters countered Papyrus’, Ink barely able to block and dodge Blueberry’s attacks. Bones of all colors littered everywhere. Black, red, and some white still humming with either light blue or orange magic.

Papyrus and Ink stopped, having Error sort of backed into a corner. It wasn’t quite what they wanted, but they knew they couldn’t back him into an actual corner unless they wanted him to get serious. He was messing around, sadistic in his play, but still, he wasn’t as serious as they were. Blueberry was exhausted, his magic reserves lowering, his body starting to shake. Papyrus was getting more worried with each passing second and Ink, well…

“Error, let him go!” he shouted, holding his brush open in his hand. He didn’t like fighting, but, well… he had to be on guard. “I thought you two were friends, why would you do this to him??”

“Oh, you know quite well, Ink.”

“P-please…” Blueberry spoke up, tears falling from his eyes. “Please, just let me go… I don’t want to hurt anyone…”

“Well, that’s too bad, because I do-!” Error was about to force Blueberry, tears in the tiny skeleton’s eyes as he was about to attack, when he suddenly disappeared.

“What did you do to him?!” Papyrus growled, blaster ready, but he, and the others, noticed the whole world going white. Tiny pixels started to break down, deleting and fading, some of the world seeming to become translucent. 

Ink, starting to internally panic a little, “W-what’s going on?”

“The hell?” Papyrus looked behind Error, causing all three of them to turn to see what got his attention.

It was difficult to make out the shape… but it was a humanoid female for certain. They could see a redish-purple top, jeans, knee-high boots… pale skin on the hands.

“A human?” Papyrus questioned.

“Hey! The fuck are you doing?!” Error shouted. The way her hand was positioned, she was messing with something. When he didn’t get a response, he threw some of his red bones at her, which suddenly dematerialized before it got within three feet of her.

“I’m not a fan of this particular universe,” they suddenly heard, Papyrus and Ink in particular paying attention. Her voice was almost even, though what else was in there… they couldn’t quite tell. It was… strange to hear. “But,” she continued, “others are. This universe has captured the minds and hearts of countless others, and therefore, cannot be disrupted like this.”

Ink felt an instant relief wash over him. Was this another protector, like him, Blueberry and Dream?

“You’re not going to ruin this for me!” Error roared out, glitching past the “wall” that blocked his bones, only to be stopped by another, seemingly having made no real progress to the person. She still seemed just as far.

The figure he aimed at was silent for a long moment, as if realizing she was the target of Error’s failed attack. Her weight shifted, her silhouetted head tilting to the side as if confused.

“Ruin it for you?” she parroted. It took a moment before she responded further, as if contemplating. “This has nothing to do with you. Any of you.”

Error roared and threw his strings out, managing to close that gap and wrap her soul, as he usually did. He smirked and grabbed tightly on them.

“Error, stop!” Ink tried to run and ran into an invisible wall. He went to turn, before feeling another wall to his right. Papyrus tried too and he got stuck. They were both in their personal, individual, clear boxes.

“Interesting,” she said, with a gentle curious inflection to her voice.

Error tried pulling, but found he couldn’t move his strings any tighter, and he was trapped inside of a box. He started to panic, slamming the walls, trying to open a door out, anything, he was trapped, seriously starting to glitch out.

“What are you doing?!” Papyrus then shouted at her.

“No need to worry, Papyrus,” he gasped a little at the fact she knew his name… why did that surprise him? But she didn’t seem like anything he had seen before in the multiverse… neither of these two seemed to know about her either. “You’ll have nothing to worry about. Sans is back home, safe and sound, waiting for you to wake up, as he always is. I’m honestly surprised you’ve stayed as long as you have. Perhaps these two are the cause of that. After all, they don’t belong to this world.”

Error roared out, desperately trying to get out of his box.

“Then, this is..?” Ink then started to ask, looking around.

“A reset?” Papyrus finished.

“Of a sort,” she said, a small smile starting to appear on her lips. Yet, she was still wrapped with Error’s strings, for some reason, they passed through the invisible walls around them, but Error was powerless to use them. No matter how hard he pulled, nothing happened. “More than what Frisk could do… or rather, it’s Chara in your world, isn’t it? I suppose it doesn’t matter. This is the one time you won’t remember.”

“Wait, what?!”

A button appeared in front of the woman and her hand hovered over it.

“Wait, you’re resetting the whole world?!” Ink then asked.

“From the inside, yes. I’m erasing this timeline. It will be as it never existed.”

“W-what’s going to happen to us?” Ink then asked, trying to figure it out. He could fake fear but truly feel it?

“You two don’t exist in this world, so I suppose you’ll do the same as I. You’ll go back “home” as it were, though, as you are both a version of Sans, I don’t know if you’ll remember this… curious.”

Error, with a last ditch effort, everything in his eyes pretty much black, tried to pull the strings attached to his fingers, feeling as if something immovable was on the other side. “D-d-don’t--!”

Ink watched as Error struggled, and she pushed the button. He felt the box close on him and he felt like he was drowning… before gasping awake in his Doodlesphere. He shot up and looked around. “Papyrus?” he called out. “Error?!”

He quickly began looking for UnderSwap’s AU and found it, temporarily inaccessible. It only lasted a moment, before he went in and began looking around. Everything was… normal. Even Blueberry was scolding Papyrus, as per normal. It went on, and Papyrus didn’t seem to have a clue of what happened. No quiet thinking to himself, nothing… nothing like with what happened the last time a reset happened… did he truly forget?

Error found himself in the anti-void… his white space, but he felt something still attached to his hands before his eyes fully cleared. He noticed a blurry figure, he tried pulling on his strings to bring it closer so he could see what he had, but it still wouldn’t move. As his eyes began to clear, he looked up to see that same human female… only this time not obscured, still wrapped up with his strings around her soul…

She stood before him, wine-red shirt with a v-neck and a thin hood attached to the collar, pull strings flat and short with black gloves from under her shirt that reached to her hand, only her thumb and first two fingers visible. Plain pale jeans were accented by near knee-high brown boots with a belt and buckle at the ankle and near the top, closing with a zipper on the inside along the length. Her hair was a mousey chestnut brown styled into a long bob, parted slightly off center on the left. Her pale, steel-bluish eyes fixated at the skeleton before her.

“Well, this is certainly a surprising turn of events,” she said with a small smirk.

Error tried to jump back and pull at her soul, trying to hoist her up, but he wound up being forced into a dead stop when her soul just wouldn’t move. “The fuck?!” he growled.

She chuckled, amused, hand on her hip. “You think a few strings are going to do anything? Oh, you’re funny.”

Error jumped a little as his strings were severed without her even moving… or blinking. Nothing, what the hell was that?! He glitched a little, before a smirk came over his lips and a deathly seriousness coming to his eyes. “You’re in my world bitch, no more walls for you to hide behind!”

Red bones shot up at her and she simply jumped back. Strings wrapped around her arm and he yanked her forward. “I might not be able to grab your soul, but you’re still just a stupid human!”

A bone ran straight through her as he pulled her close. She fell atop of it, and Error pulled back, panting with a smirk, then he frowned. “Damn it. Now I have to clean this up.”

As he turned, he heard a laugh. Slightly unnerved, he turned, seeing the woman putting a hand on the bone, the wound starting so steam with blackness. Her hand closed on the bone and it disappeared in a pixelated form and she stood up straight, the wound in her stomach completely black and still hissing with that black steam.

“Oh, this is beautiful,” she laughed.

Error slowly took a few steps back. “What the fuck are you?!”

“Someone who’s finally found something interesting in these damn AUs!” she grinned.

Error blinked, just kind of staring at her. “What, me?” he pointed at himself, confused, unsure of her reaction at all.

“Yes!” she laughed, “You three were the only ones who have ever seen me in an AU! And you, oh, you managed to keep me from going back when I reset a world!”

“Going back where? What abomination do you come from?”

“I don’t!” she smiled at him, finally stopping her laughing fit. “But you don’t either, do you? You and that other Sans, neither of you belong to a single universe. No, you’ve escaped that hell, but into what hell have you found yourself now?”

Error growled and pulled out a blaster and aimed it at her.

“Oh please,” she smiled at him. “Why waste your energy?” she asked. “Is this about the box? I saw you flailing. That’s not my doing. That’s how the code deals with isolated abnormalities like us. Honestly, I was surprised that Papyrus was involved, though I’m sure that had to do with his interaction with that other Sans… maybe because he was aware of what I was doing. I’ll be honest I’ve never actually interacted with someone who knew about the resets as I’ve done one.”

“You need to shut up!” he roared, firing a blaster directly at her.

The smoke cleared, and nothing was there but a burn stain. Error felt a little pleased with himself.

“You missed.”

Error jumped ten feet and leapt away from the woman who suddenly appeared behind him, talking in his ear. He grabbed her tightly with his strings, stringing her up. “God damn it!” he growled.

She just laughed. “Ah, sorry, sorry. I couldn’t help myself! Do you have any idea how boring it is to just walk around these things? Not being able to interact with anyone?”

“Yeah and what’s your point?”

She tilted her head, looking at him. “I suppose I let the quiet get to me a little too much. It’s just… fun to interact with someone, especially someone on the same level.”

“Heh, you’re hardly on my level. I’ve got you and you’re not going anywhere.”

“Oh, please,” she chuckled. “Did you forget what happened when you first woke up already?” She simply smiled, and his threads shattered, letting her land easily and Error fell on his backside.

He looked up at her, confused, but ready to fight. She simply walked over and held out her hand for him, smiling. “Really, if I wanted to harm you, I would have fought back. You’re not being serious either, are you?”

Error stared at her before he burst out laughing. “You really think I-I’m just going to just be your friend? Are you as stupid as that damn Blueberry? As Ink??” He teleported away from her, glaring, “Why would I ever be friends with a damn protector?!”

She rose a brow. “Protector?”

“Of those abominations!”

“Abomin—Oh! You mean the AUs? Oh, no!” she laughed. “Dude, hardly! I don’t even like UnderSwap! The original version of it had a basic concept, but everyone just utterly mutilated Sans with Blueberry, are you kidding me? They just made him to do some stupid sugary bullcrap with him! Sorry, not into children! Honestly, I like a dude with a little more grit to him. There’s no character development, and don’t get me started on Papyrus! They just don’t do well with their personalities swapped like that in my opinion. They’re not even close to the original!”

“Then why did you stop me?”

“Because it was pointless in the first place. You could try, but the creators would just bring it back, and worse. I’d rather have source material, thank you. If you destroyed the AU, the original, semi-decent version would be gone and we’d be left with diabetes Sans, and all the spin-offs. Sugar is a virus.”

Error thought about it as she spoke.

“Creators are weird. Some will support stuff like this, but others will attack, killing off weaker AUs for you, preventing them from taking off. And if they do manage to gain traction, they’ll be abandoned, and easy for you to just wipe out.”

“You seem to know a lot about this…” The logic was sound, even he couldn’t deny it. It took some fun away, but…

“That’s because I have a direct line.”

Instantly, his head shot up as he looked over to her. “What??”

She chuckled, smiling a little at him. “Sorry, but I’m not gonna say anymore~! Gotta save some fun for our next visit, right?”

“Hey! You can’t leave! This is my space! Only I can get in or out!!”

“Well, true, you brought me here, let me find this place.”

Error’s face turned blue. Did he seriously just… no, no she was his prisoner now! She couldn’t leave!

“Which means I can find it whenever I want now! Toodles!”

Error tried to grab her with his strings, but she just teleported… and disappeared. “No!! She has to be here!!!” he roared out, going everywhere in his personal space, finding no trace. Did she…? Error roared out, his glitch intensifying until he had a full crash. What… was that?

Somewhere, in the emptiness of the Anti-Void, hidden amongst the files, the woman leaned up on some code, wincing as she put her hand to her stomach, the black over her wound flaking a little.

“D-damn… Fuck my life,” she groaned as she slid down, sitting in a hidden corner of the code. “Doesn’t matter how many times it happens, it always hurts like a fucking bitch… Too bad… Maybe I should avoid being hit next time… but I don’t want to scare him off… he was interesting…”

Her eyes slowly closed as she curled up into the corner, her body shimmering until it disappeared, invisible inside of the code.


	2. Chapter 2 - Unlikely Guest

# Chapter 2 – Unlikely Guest

It had been a few days since Error had seen the female abnormality. He had attempted to locate her, but it wasn’t like he could track her down. She was as elusive as Ink… or himself for that matter. It wasn’t like he couldn’t disappear from pursuit and hide in his little slice of anti-void sanctuary, which is what he decided to do after being productive and destroying another alternate universe. Error came back, a little fatigued after destroying so much. That AU was packed, and he had a lot to destroy. He hadn’t been particularly motivated, just bored. He also wondered if it would draw attention from that strange anomaly…

Error jolted to a stop as he came upon a blotch of color in his white home. The strange woman was there, sitting on a chair made of purple crystal, a table of the same substance beside her with a drink. Her back was to him, so he couldn’t see fully, but she had a pencil and a book, and he had been around Ink enough to recognize that much.

He twitched and launched a series of bones from the ground to shatter the crystal, throwing the woman from her spot.

“Dude! Rude! You just messed up my whole thing!” she scolded him as she sat up from the floor.

“Rude?! You’re the one who’s in my home, uninvited!”

“Well, where else am I supposed to try and find you?”

Error blinked. “You were looking for me?”

“Well, yeah! Didn’t I say we’d meet again last time? I swear I said it,” she said, looking as if she was pondering that very subject.

“That doesn’t mean I wanted it!” he was about to grab her with his strings again, but she held up a hand.

“Haven’t you learned by now? You’re just wasting your energy. I can snap your strings, de-materialize your bones, and dodge your lasers.”

“So you’re as annoying as any other Sans I’ve come across. What’s your point?”

“But I’m not a Sans, am I?” she pointed out.

“No… no you’re not,” he confirmed. “So what the hell do you want?”

“Didn’t I say that too? I’m bored, and you’re interesting.”

“I’m not here for your entertainment!”

“I know. I just want to get to know you.”

“Ugh, not again. You wanna be friends, don’t you?”

She tilted her head a little to the side. “Well, that’s a mutual thing isn’t it? I don’t have friends, not anymore, so…” A somber note that even left Error quiet for a long moment, before she continued, “I don’t really care what we do. Hell, I had fun with you trying to kill me last time. I’d rather not go through that again, though. Still hurts to be run through, ya know?” she chuckled softly with a smile. “But, I can make it worth your while~. I can get you just about anything, except my soul. Gonna stop you there, buddy, you couldn’t yank it out, I can’t get it out so that one’s off the table.”

“Anything, huh? Can you tell me where Core!Frisk is?”

“Core…Frisk?” she parroted, looking thoughtful. “Not off the top of my head. But, I can read code in a way most can’t. There’s a lot of it, but if you give me time, I could probably find a trail.”

“What good are you then? I don’t need you for that, I can just lure them out.”

“But then you would have done it already. I’m guessing they’re careful, slow, deliberate, cautious. Not unlike you when you stalk an AU, right?”

“Are you stalking me, now? I thought you didn’t know about me before!”

“Oh, I didn’t, and I don’t,” she grinned. “But I’m good at reading people, and you just seem like the predatory type. Like a cat slowly stalking its prey, or an assassin taking on an army on their own, getting the outliers, the ones that would cause the most issue are removed first. I’ll admit, it’s a tactic I have used myself. One of my favorites actually. More fun to freak out the others as they find their friends dead.”

Error stared at her for a long moment, before he burst out into hysterical laughter. “You’re a demented little bitch, aren’t you?”

She shrugged a little. “I can be. I don’t see the point in cowering from the fact that in the end, everything dies. That’s just how our world works. And I’m not going to pretend some people don’t deserve to die, but as always, that’s a matter of perspective.” She snapped her fingers and a flat purple crystal appeared and she plopped back on it, her head hanging upside down as it turned so she could look at him again. This honestly took Error aback a little, but he just watched as she talked. “I’m sure a lot of people think you’re evil and deserve to die. It’s a thankless job, isn’t it? Taking out the garbage all the time?”

Error was utterly confused, glitching a little as her comments seem to contradict each other. “You’re the one who stopped me from destroying one of those abominations, yet you call them garbage?”

She blinked, still upside down. “You’re still on that? I told you, it wouldn’t have truly been dead. Buuut~ I do know several others that are or need to die. That the creators of them want them dead or are abandoned completely. Like I said before, work on the outliers, right?” she grinned.

Error blinked, staring at her for a long, hard minute. “Are you… saying you want me to destroy those AUs?”

“Well, duh, that’s your job isn’t it?” she smiled as she rolled over on the crystal, laying on her stomach now. “I’m not against things dying, hardly. It’s part of life. But, there are so many things that need to die that you’re not even aware of.”

“So why haven’t you done it? You can get into the code.”

“I can’t. The only thing I can do in the code is fully reset. I can erase all the multiple timelines, just bringing it back to the core timeline of the AU, or a single variant. You’re the only one who can destroy them, fully, it seems. I mean, I could probably go in and help you kill everyone, but I can’t destroy the world as a whole.”

“You could… you would help me?” he asked, a little confused, but that idea didn’t sound all that bad to him.

“Yeah, totally!” she grinned at him. “Though, I got this thing with killing kids, unless, ya know, they’re murderous little assholes, like Chara, so you might have to deal with those. But, even if they’re normally what I wouldn’t just outright go kill, if they attack me, well… my life’s more important, ya know?”

“Then why didn’t you attack me?” he questioned.

“Because you’re interesting!” she grinned at him. “You’re the first interesting thing I’ve found while traveling through these AUs. The last thing I want to do is kill you, or scare you off. I know it’s weird and random, but I don’t want to be alone anymore. I’ll take any kind of interaction at this point, even you trying to kill me.”

“That’s… surprisingly pathetic.”

“Oh, I’m sure you weren’t much different when you finally found something to latch onto.”

Error grew silent, his mind flashing back to bits and pieces, of finding Toriel in those ruins, talking to her, not wanting to go back to the anti-void, ignoring its calls… He shook his head of these thoughts. “You don’t know anything.”

“Well… maybe not,” she smiled at him. “But I know you look a little tired. You wanna give one of these a try?” she asked, pointing to the crystal she was on. “They’re surprisingly comfortable for being rocks,” she grinned.

Error kind of stared at the purple crystal, uncertain how he felt about it, the color… everything. Then he looked down to the mess at their feet, from when he destroyed the last chair she was in.

She looked down and blinked. “Oh. Don’t worry, I got it,” she said, snapping her fingers and all the crystal disappeared. All that was left was her spilled drink and her sketchbook and pencil.

Error rose a brow, but he opened a portal in his world, dumping the spilled drink out of his world, into UnderFell, because, where else?

“Hey, my book!” she called out as the sketchbook teetered on the edge of this portal. She tried to run for it, but it fell.

Error, not knowing why, quickly grabbed it at the pencil before it fell on FellSans’ head and yanked it back with his strings, closing the portal. He caught the book in his hand, along with the pencil, and looked at the page, noticing it was him on the page, but it had a thick gash from the pencil going through it… from when he attacked her. “Why the hell were you drawing me?”

“Like I said, you’re interesting. Honestly, it’s the first thing I’ve drawn in a long time.”

Error stared at it for longer than he thought he would. “Well, you need practice,” he said as he tossed it back at her, pencil and all. She caught it awkwardly, trying not to bend the pages. Ironic how clumsy she was with this, when just the last time, she so eloquently rolled with everything he threw at her. “You got my face all wrong.”

“Well, it helps to have a live model of that, ya know,” she smirked at him, getting her book settled. “I was going off the short memory I had from the one second you weren’t trying to kill me.”

He rose a brow, then looked around, a little awkwardly. “What does… a live model do?”

She giggled a little. “Just whatever you want. I can work with you moving around, doing whatever. But, really, do you want a chair? There’s nothing in here.”

“I like it empty. Sitting on the floor is fine.”

“Come on, a chair’s not going to take up too much room.”

He looked at her, fighting for the sake of just arguing. “I don’t like the color. Purple, really?”

“Well, I like the purple,” she grinned. “But I have red and blue as well, and you can’t argue you don’t like those. You’ve got both in your clothes.”

Error found himself unable to argue that point, and he began to mutter, “Fine, red,” he almost whispered under his breath.

She grinned and snapped two red crystal reclining chairs, causing Error to jump back a little as it appeared a little too close for his liking. He watched as she also pulled in a table in the middle with snacks… his eyes focused in on the chocolate in the candy bowl.

“Help yourself,” she said as she hopped into her chair, curled up with her legs under her, even though the chair was able to recline.

Error eyed her for a moment before moving to cautiously sit in the chair. It was crystal, it was hard… but surprisingly it wasn’t uncomfortable. It shouldn’t have even been an issue, he sat and slept on the floor all the time, but it was like… it was softer than it looked… and it was warm to the touch.

“See? Not so bad,” she smiled.

Error didn’t say anything, but he did take some chocolate from the candy bowl… eyeing the lighter brown squares in it. “What… is this?”

She glanced over, chuckling. “Caramel. My favorite,” she grinned.

Error continued to stare at it before popping the whole thing in his mouth.

She blinked, watching him. “You’re not supposed to eat the wrapper…”

He stared at her a moment before, using his tentacle tongues, pulled the wrapped out of his mouth.

She blinked rapidly at the sudden appearance of the strange version of a tongue he had. “Well… that’s… unique,” she laughed.

Error rose a brow at her. “What? You told me not to eat the wrapper.”

“I meant your tongue,” she said, sticking her own out at him. “It’s strange enough that a skeleton has one at all, let alone tentacles for one.”

Error couldn’t quite hide his embarrassment, a tint of blue appearing on his cheeks as he roared out, trying to hide it with anger. “Well, no one asked you!!” He crossed his arms, looking away from her.

Jewel watched as he practically pouted, and she chuckled softly. It was kind of cute if she was honest with herself. She grabbed a chocolate from her candy bowl and held it out toward him, which after a moment, he caught from the corner of his eye, turning just slightly to look back at her.

“I’m sorry, I wasn’t making fun of you. I just laugh when I’m at a loss for words, something to fill the silence, I suppose…”

Error slowly turned back around, staring at her hand with the chocolate. He hesitated, staring at it for longer than what should have been considered normal. His hand started hovering, nervously, over her own before he managed to quickly snatch the chocolate from her, letting out a breath he didn’t realize he was holding. Too close…

She watched him for a long moment, before leaning back in her chair. “My name’s Jewel… by the way,” she said softly.

The black and red skeleton turned, looking at her. “Is that why you can summon crystal?”

She blinked then laughed. “Oh wow. Ya know, I never thought about it. But no, I don’t think it’s related. I mean, Jewel’s not even my real name.”

Error blinked. “Huh? What is then?”

She shrugged a little. “I dunno. I can’t remember. I just… know that I decided to change my name from what it was. Just like you,” she said, turning to face him. “I mean, you’re Sans, there’s no changing that. But you call yourself something different, right? Like you called those other two Sanses Blueberry and Ink.”

He stared at her for a moment before leaning back with a soft chuckle. “Right. That’s what they call themselves, however, not my name for them.”

“So, what’s your name?”

“Error,” he introduced himself. “Sans abomination #1,” he said with pride.

Jewel blinked before letting out a soft chuckle. “Ya know, I like that. You own what you are, that’d admirable.”

Error almost choked on his chocolate, sitting up and looking at her. “Admirable? Me?”

“What? Never had anyone tell you that before?”

“Well… no. Most everyone hates me because I killed all their loved ones, etc.”

“Well, I suppose that’s fair. But, I don’t have anyone like that. So guess I’m safe in that regard,” she smiled.

Error just stared at her for a moment. “You’re insane, you know that? Why do you wanna be friends with me? I’m not a “friend” person!”

“I never said I wanted to be your friend,” she pointedly told him. “You’re the one assuming I want to be your friend.”

Error just sat there, confused.

“Ooh! That’s a good one!” she grinned, snapping a photo with her phone of his expression.

Error blinked. “Hey, what did you do!” he almost reached over to grab it, but he realized how close he would have been to her.

“Sorry, that was a good expression! I wanna capture that!”

Error just stared at her for a long few moments, watching her pull out her sketchbook, going to an undamaged page and started to run her pencil across the paper. He sat back, pouting a little. Great, she was going to draw that expression now. He hid a blush of embarrassment, lifting his hood over his skull.

It was nice though… to not be alone. She could be quiet, especially when she was drawing. The scratching of her pencil was a little annoying, but he was able to tune it out after a little bit. The chocolate helped. He wound up pulling the bowl to his lap and just started eating it, even a bit of the caramel. It wasn’t bad… he just preferred the chocolate.


	3. Chapter 3 - Tangled Words

# Chapter 3 – Tangled Words

"So, this is the AU you were telling me about?" Error asked as he opened a pixelated portal in his white space.

"Looks like it," she said, looking inside of it. "Ya know, if you just let me take you, it wouldn't have taken so long to find."

"No," he said firmly. "Your way requires… touching," he almost shuddered.

She smiled a little at him. "Well, you could touch me instead, then it's your own choice. But I get it. I'm sorry my powers require contact."

"It's not your fault," he said as he entered into the world, looking back as she followed through, and he closed the portal. "We don't get to choose what our powers are."

Jewel's smile softened as she looked at him. "You know, that was almost profound."

He rolled his eyes. "Doesn't mean your powers are any less annoying just because you didn't get to choose them."

Jewel chuckled. "You're just mad you can't keep me down."

He groaned as she followed him. "You're the one who said it, right? Neither of us were really trying our hardest. I rather not see you on that level."

"So you rather have me on your side than the other side, huh?"

"Is it so hard to believe? I don't really make many friends, but I'm not opposed to working with someone."

"I see," she said softly, following all the same.

Error rose a brow as he turned, looking at her. That didn't sound like normal… "You're not getting flakey on me, are you? I thought you said these AUs needed to die. You weren't particularly motivated for the last one."

"Just… bored?" she shrugged a little. "It's almost always the same fight. And it's not really fun when they're so much weaker."

"Tell me about it," he muttered. "The more popular AUs seem to have more power, for some reason. These ones are so easy I could wipe them out in my sleep. But you're the one who came up with this plan."

"Yeah, still, not as fun as I thought it'd be, I suppose…"

"It's a thankless job," Error said with a smirk. "If you want, you can sit this one out. Just draw, since you've decided you have to bring that… bag," he said, eyeing the very pink and purple bag around her chest, "everywhere you go."

"Well, I never know when inspiration will strike. I've had a lot more since I met you," she smiled at him. "And it's not like I can't get the basic idea down while dealing with the weaklings here."

Error laughed a little as they walked. "Gotta admit, I love how you toy with them doing that. It's hilarious to watch them struggle and all you do is dance around and draw, not even taking them seriously. It's almost as interesting as Undernovela."

"Undernovela?" Jewel questioned.

"You haven't seen that AU? Oh, I've got to show you when we're done!" he grinned at her as they walked. "It's like, I want to wipe them out, but the story is just too good, ya know? I can't get enough of it!"

Jewel chuckled. "Well, it's gotta be something special if you're willing to spare it."

"Definitely! You got a favorite show?" he asked as they walked.

"I don't really watch much, admittedly. I listen to music and create my own stories. I used to be big into reading, but there's not much that really appeals to me that I can find anymore. Maybe I'm just too picky, given that I can always just make what I want."

"Sounds like it'd spoil it for you. I have a few favorite books, maybe I'll show them to you later. They might be something you'd like."

"Well, maybe. What are they about? Probably destroying stuff?"

"Hey, there's more to me than just destroying AUs!"

"Well, maybe I'd know if you'd introduce me to the friends you do have."

"Oh, I never did that?" he blinked. "Heh, when we get back. But you gotta do stuff for me in exchange, got it? I don't just give things away so casually."

"Well, what do you want?" she grinned at him.

"Don't know yet, I'll let you know when I think of it."

It was almost a pleasant stroll through an AU. It was pretty empty actually, so it didn't bother her. But for some reason, this entire AU was spring-like, which didn't fit well, being underground. It was probably why it didn't take off. Well, one of many reasons. They were walking by a lake, which Error eyed curiously.

"What were they thinking here? This doesn't fit at all."

"It's more backward than UnderSwap, for sure," Jewel agreed.

"We haven't come across anyone yet."

"Well, I don't know if they bothered to even populate the world with more than just the "important" ones, ya know?"

"Ugh, no wonder this one sucks."

As they walked, the lake behind them began to bubble, and slowly, out of the water, Ink started to rise. His eyes narrowed a little as he saw Error walking with someone… why was she familiar?

"Error!" Ink shouted at him from his spot, standing on the water.

Error felt a jolt run through him as his name was called out. He and Jewel turned back at the same time to turn to Ink leaping out of the lake and in front of them.

"Great, it's the ink stain," he muttered.

"Really, you're going after this one? This one is still so young!"

"Not in the mood, Ink. I got here first, this one's mine!"

"We never agreed to that! You've been going after AUs I never even thought you'd bother with! This isn't your usual motive, what are you up to?! And who…" Ink stared at the human beside Error, and the realization hit him like a truck. "You're the one who reset UnderSwap!"

"Oh look, he remembers me," Jewel chuckled.

Error rolled his eyes. "The one thing he does remember."

"Oh don't be so harsh, your memory isn't the greatest either."

"At least I remember important things."

Ink stared at the two, uncertain what this dynamic was, but he didn't like it. Error had this powerful human in his possession. She could reset the world… could she… had he been using her to destroy AUs faster than he could detect? Was that why so many of them had disappeared?

"Error, can't you just leave this one alone?" Ink called out. "There's so much that could happen here!"

"I'm so not in the mood to deal with you today!" he roared back out.

Jewel then stepped forward, causing Error to look at her confused, and curious. "Go on, you don't need me for this one. I'll keep Ink-boy busy while you do what needs to be done. I'll meet you when it's done."

Error blinked, then smirked. "Right. Have fun," he said, teleport-hopping away from the lake.

"No!" Ink exclaimed as he tried to run after, only to fall backward when he was suddenly blocked off by the human. He looked up at her.

"Sorry, you're not going~. We're gonna stay and play."

"N-no! I have to stop him! This AU has so much potential, it just needs-!" he tried to run past her, but she grabbed him by his sash, yanking him back. But it was what she said that stopped him dead in his tracks.

"The creator wants it gone." Ink looked back, eyes wide. Her voice wasn't as playful as before, it was serious, and if he had a soul, it might have shaken him. "Who are you to overrule the one who made this world, huh?"

Ink turned, staring at her. "It's you, isn't it? You're the one who's telling Error where to go!" he realized, backing away, not even realizing she purposely let go of his sash for him to do so. "Why? I thought you were a protector! A guardian, like me! You saved UnderSwap from him!"

"Not for the reasons you think," she shrugged. "I honestly don't even like UnderSwap, too much sugary bullcrap put into that version of Sans. But," she softened her voice, "others do. And it's not my place to kill something that others enjoy, even if I personally don't." She looked down at Ink. "Besides, creators make so many different versions of that AU, I'd rather have some decent source material to reference. The "canon" UnderSwap Sans didn't even go by Blueberry."

Ink stared at her. "You… you know enough to know that much, so you do care about the AUs! Why are you helping Error? He wants to destroy the Multiverse!"

"Things die," she said plainly. "You, Error, me… we all have our place and time. AUs are no different. But you can't tell me you care about the people here, Ink. They're miserable, no purpose, just… existence. Like an endless void of nothing."

Ink's eyes widened as he had flashes of when he first arrived in his Doodlesphere, no color, nothing…

"Sometimes death is preferable. I understand the desire to help someone… but their creator doesn't want them anymore. No one will. So, they need to go."

Ink stared at her, unable to fully comprehend what she was saying. "No, there's… no! Their creator can come back! All they need is a little inspiration! It doesn't have to be like this!"

"But that's the reality of the situation. This one is Error's territory. It's his job in the multiverse. And I know your talents are required somewhere else. Creators who need the inspiration you're willing to give here."

Ink turned to look at the beautiful landscape, his fist clenching. "I can't just…"

"Sometimes things are sick and you can't help it. Sometimes… not all ideas are good ones." Jewel went over and put a hand on his shoulder, causing him to look over. "I love how pretty it is here too. But there are plenty of other AUs just as beautiful. Or ones that can be this beautiful with a little creativity."

Ink turned to face her, tension mostly dissipated from his frame. "You really do care about the multiverse… why are you helping Error? It's not like he's going to be friends with you if you help him, believe me, I've tried."

That sentence hit hard, more than she thought it would. "I know. Error doesn't want to be friends. At least he's upfront about it… but… He's letting me stay around. He's interesting and I… well, I'm tired of being alone. Wandering through the code it…" she started to trail off.

Ink listened, intently, doing his best to focus. "Error's not the only one around, though! There are lots of universes you can go to, make friends! I'll be your friend!" Ink then grinned at her. "You don't have to keep destroying AUs, you can help me protect them!"

Ink offered his hand to her, giving her a cheesy grin. She stared at him for a long while, but before she could make up her mind, one way or another, the world started to flicker, the ground beneath them giving way as it was erased.

"Aaah!" Ink shouted as he fell. Shit, where could he throw ink to?

Ink looked over as the human, slightly above him, grabbed his arm, "Hang on!" she shouted at him before she teleported them out of the deleting AU. They hit solid ground, rolling around on grass yet again before coming to a stop.

Ink rubbed his head, looking around. He saw the human getting up, her bag having unbuckled itself from her and laid on the ground. "Wh-what did you do?" he blinked up at her.

"You're so dramatic, Ink," she laughed lightly.

He blushed a little. "Come on, what did you do? Humans can't teleport!"

"Normal ones, no," she admitted, sitting there. "But I'm not normal. Neither are you."

Ink stared at her, eyes wide as he moved over to get in her line of sight. "I get it now! You're a creator!"

Jewel blinked up at him and burst out laughing. "A creator? Haha, no, no," she smiled at him. "But, you're not completely wrong." She then motioned behind him, and he turned, looking at a half-drawn world. "This AU is in the early stages of development," she said as she got up, standing beside him. "I've got a pretty reliable source that they're stuck. They want to create an amazing AU, but they can't get a full concept down. What they do know is that they want to try something that's never been done before. Unfortunately, you and I both know that nothing is 100% original, it's always going to have a similarity to something. But… this world could really use your creative judgment here."

Ink turned, looking at her with a bit of an awestruck look. "You're totally a creator, you wouldn't know all of this if you weren't!"

Jewel smiled a little at him. "I don't create, Ink. Not AUs anyway. I just… examine them, explore. I'm not… I'm not what you think, either."

Ink stared at her, then her bag on the ground. He picked it up, feeling something familiar inside. He opened it up, no personal space boundaries, and saw the sketchbook.

"I have a direct line," she said, looking at him going through her bag. "I'm… an avatar of a creator, I suppose you could say. I'm not one, but I'm related, does that make sense?"

"Not really, no," he blinked, his eyes changing shapes to little spirals in confusion.

She laughed. "I suppose it is weird. But you know their power first hand too, don't you?" she asked, pointing to his sash. "That paint, it's from them, isn't it?"

Ink's face paled a little and he looked down, gripping his sash. "Did you hear about me from the creators?"

"No," she said honestly. "I don't… like doing that. My creator probably did, but I... well, it's weird. I don't really interact with the AUs… but you and Error, well… you're not part of them, are you? You're like me, where you float around."

He stared up at her, listening as her tone got darker, sadder… "You don't have to, you know? You can travel with me, we can go around the multiverse and inspire others."

"Heh, I can draw, Ink, but I'm not very creative. I just… exist. Find things to entertain myself and then move on."

Ink's face fell a little. "Is that what you're doing to Error? Just something to do?"

"He's interesting, I'm not going to deny that. But I like him. And, well… he's going to destroy AUs no matter what either of us say or do. I might as well turn him to the AUs that want to die."

Ink stared at her, before grinning. "So you are a protector!"

She chuckled a little. "I'm just pointing him in the direction of where his power is wanted. Just like I did with you," she said, motioning back to the empty world. "But, I should get back before Error starts getting mad. And I have something I want to draw now," she said as she held out her hand for her bag, which Ink was still holding.

"Oh," he handed it back after putting her sketchbook back inside. "But, wait! Before you go… you showed me this world. Do you have a theme in mind?" he grinned. "This person needs inspiration! Even if you don't think you're good at it, I'm sure you have some ideas! And I'd kind of like to hear your name before you go! I mean, you know mine, probably from Error, but I'm Ink!"

She chuckled softly. "Well…" she thought about it, smirking. "If you really wanna know… Error actually brought this to my attention, if you want to stick it to him later." She snapped her fingers, summoning three small crystals in her hand, red, purple, and blue, before handing them to Ink as his eyes lit up with stars. "My name is Jewel."

Ink beamed. "Yes! We can have a crystal and jewel theme! Oh, this is awesome!" he then ran off, brush in one hand, crystals in the other.

She chuckled softly. "Goodbye, Ink," she said quietly, watching him run off before teleporting back to the anti-void.

Error had been pacing, the minutes she had been gone feeling so much longer when time didn't flow in his space. What was taking her so long? He had always gotten them out as the world deleted. Did she get caught? No, she couldn't have, she could teleport out…

His head shot up when he heard the sound of her teleport, faint as it was. "Where the fuck were you?!" he shouted at her.

She blinked as she looked back at him. "Dealing with Ink. See, your memory really is bad."

"It shouldn't have taken you this long to come back from just dealing with that squid!"

She rose a brow. "Squid?"

He groaned, frustrated. "Don't you fucking start. Stay on topic! What took you so long?!"

"Well, you kind of swept the world out from underneath us," she chuckled a little. "Had to teleport to another AU first. I didn't think you wanted him following me, so I had to distract him."

"Distract him… how?"

"A world that's barely started with no life in it, pretty much an empty canvas for someone like him."

"You took him to start another AU!?"

"It was already started, Error. Not like I created a new one. And if he works at it, it's not going to make more work for you later, it already existed."

"Who's side are you on?!"

She stared at him, getting a little concerned. He was getting so hostile… "Error, I…"

He didn't even give her a chance to finish. "I should have known this was going to happen! You draw, just like him! Fucking damn it!" he roared.

"Error, please, would you just—"

"Shut up!!" he screamed, "Fuck you and fuck all of this!!"Error grabbed her bag with his strings, ripping off of her and throwing it up, a blaster disintegrating it.

He panted, breathing heavily from anger as he looked up at the ashes and embers falling, the shards of paper and fabric coming down, the raining bits of plastic. Error felt smug like he just won his argument. She can't be like Ink without her sketchbook. But as he turned, the smirk fell from his face as he saw Jewel standing there, shock on her face as she looked at the raining material. He watched as her expression softened only slightly into sadness… The brightness in her eyes disappeared, hell the color even seemed to gray out.

"Jewel… I…" he couldn't find the words. He felt uncomfortable. Why, why was this bothering him?

"That's some way to treat someone you think wants to be your friend," she muttered softly.

And instantly, Error was on the defensive. "You said you didn't want to be my friend!" he shouted at her.

"I never said that!" she countered, moisture in her eyes. "You keep putting words in my mouth! First, you assume I want to be your friend, now you assume I don't!"

"Well, which is it then!?" he roared at her.

"I just wanted to get to know you!" she barked back. "Is it really so hard to understand I don't just want to be "friends" for the sake of the word?"

Error was taken aback a little, staring at her. He had been so used to Ink and everyone else trying to just win him over automatically, and his idea of 'friend' wasn't any better. Kidnapping people and forcing them…

But rage filled him again. What was her end-game then? Was she messing with him? "Well I don't want to be friends with you!" he roared at her. "You're stupid and weak! You went and took that damn ink stain's side instead of mine! You gave him a world to create!! I thought you wanted to destroy the AUs, but you lied to me!"

"I didn't lie to you!"

"Bullshit! You said they needed to die!"

"I said some things needed to die! You're cherry-pic—"

"SHUT UP!!" Error screamed, summoning another blaster in front of her and fired.

Error didn't know what he expected to have happened. Maybe he expected her to dodge and run away. All he knew was that wasn't what happened. He stared ahead at the destruction… he shattered the red chairs she had made, the table… crystal was lying everywhere, with Jewel in the center of it. She was smoking, the laser burning her skin, her clothes… the crystal she had fallen into had cut her slightly.

He stared at her, unable to move. Why didn't she move out of the way? Why did she take it? It wasn't until her tears started falling that he snapped out of it, but by then, it was too late. He started to move toward her, but she teleported out of the anti-void.

"Jewel!" he tried calling after her, but as usual, there was nothing but silence.

His brow furrowed as he looked down at the shattered mess he had created, noticing her blood having slightly pooled near a portion of shattered crystal. He slowly lowered himself to his knees, just staring at the destruction he had caused… what had he done?


	4. Chapter 4 - Surprise Encounter

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **Warning: Themes of suicide, self-harm, and depression**
> 
> This chapter is not necessary but it does introduce UnderFell as part of the story and gives Jewel and UnderFell Sans a little character development. If theme worries you, TL:DR at the bottom

# Chapter 4 – Surprise Encounter

Jewel didn’t know where she had teleported to. She just knew it was away from Error. How could she have been so stupid?! This always happened! Somehow, someway, anyone she tried to get close to would turn on her! Why did she even try?

She heard footsteps crunching in the snow behind her, but she didn’t care. She sat there against the tree, torn between ripping it apart and just sitting there crying.

“Well, well, what do we have here?” a gravelly voice spoke.

It was another skeleton, another Sans. Red and black clothes, golden tooth… Great, she ended up in Underfell.

“Not in the mood,” she muttered.

“Well, can’t say I dun know the feelin’,” he sarcastically commented, “But, ya should know better, human.” Bones suddenly floated around him, aimed at her. “After all, it’s yer kind who started all this and made the law what it is. Kill, or be killed!” His eye glowed fiercely with red magic as he threw his bones at her.

Jewel was just done. So, so done. She teleported out of the way, Sans was surprised by the sudden disappearance, only to almost have a heart attack as she appeared right before him, slugging at him. He only barely managed to dodge, almost falling back before teleporting into another standing position a bit away.

“Oh, fuck!” ran through his mind. He was going to die! He thought this little human, already beaten up would be easy, she looked miserable as it was. But this chick was as crazy fast as he was!

He summoned a blaster to try and hit her point-blank, only to have her destroy it right in front of him. He panicked and started summoning bones all around him, trying to defend himself as he fell backward onto the snow.

“If that’s your damn motto,” she growled, grabbing one of the bones and swiping it at a tree just above his head, breaking it in half, “Then just get it over with already!” she roared as she thrust the bone deep into her own arm.

Sans sat there, having flinched at the bone almost going for his head. It wasn’t until he realized she was breaking it to attack herself that he froze. His bones disappeared as blood sprayed all around them, staining the snow. He watched as this woman, who was strong enough to destroy his blaster with one hit… just broke down and cried while she bled out. And he… couldn’t help but empathize with her.

“H-hey,” he stuttered, slowly moving up from his backside to his knees, a hand out carefully closing the gap. “I-it’s no fun i-if ya want to die,” he tried to play it off. He couldn’t seem soft now… but all that blood… if he had a stomach he would be in trouble.

He watched her, she wasn’t doing anything besides sobbing. He couldn’t handle it. He teleported away, but he came back a short while after with some bandages. “Don’t go thinkin’ I care or nuttin’,” he said as he got closer to her, testing to see if she would react. When she didn’t, he knelt down beside her, making the bone disappear, which lead to that much more blood spewing everywhere. His face paled, somehow, and he quickly put two pads of gauze around the wound, his hands becoming soaked before he started wrapping it up.

She didn’t move as he tended to her, but he noticed a few things. Her sleeve was shredded from whatever had attacked her before, and his bone… he saw some scars behind all the blood. “Now… I dun care,” he had to start off, “and it’s nun of my business… but what’s a sweet girl like you doin’ this to yerself?” he asked softly. “The chicks dig scars, but most guys, not so much.”

“Shut up, Red…” she muttered softly.

He blinked at her, unable to help a soft chuckle. “Red, huh? I’ve been called worse. Though yer pretty “red” yerself, sweetheart.”

“You’re going to get yourself smacked talking to girls like that, ya know.”

“Eh, I’m use ta it,” he shrugged.

Silence overcame them both as he just wrapped up her arm. She seemed to have given up, only had the retorts in her, if that anymore. When he finished, he started trying to clean his hands off with the snow, suddenly grateful he wore nothing but black, as it wouldn’t show.

“C’mon, what’s got ya down?” he then asked.

“So much for kill or be killed, eh?”

“Yah, well… if I try that again, ya could kill me in two seconds, couldn’t ya?” he then pointed out. “Ya got some serious power in there. Why ya so keen on givin’ it up?”

“Like you said, it’s none of your business.”

Sans just stared at her for a minute, before sighing heavily. “Look… I’ll level witcha. I dun really care ‘bout that whole law thing. Tis what’s expected of me. But it comes with a price. My brother, little brother, mind you, takes credit for everything he makes me do. When it’s good at least. Everyone in town hates my guts because he’s a cruel son of a bitch, and he’s…” he grabbed his arm a little, not looking at her. “I jes can’t stand to see a dame cry, ya know? Not at the level yer at. I mean, my life sucks, but if I can get through it, then whatever yer goin’ through, you can get through it too.”

She stared at him for a little, then laughed at him. “Oh boy you suck at this.”

“Hey, I’m tryin’! Not like I’ve been on the receivin’ end of this kind of talk, dun know what to do.” He then looked down. “I dun even know what’s got me wantin’ to talk like this.”

“Nah, you’re fine,” she said as she leaned back a little, sitting fully in the snow. “Strangely it’s working… maybe you’re just giving me something else to focus on, but it’s working all the same.”

Sans stared at her a little. “But this isn’t yer first time, is it?”

“Is it yours?” she pointed out, motioning to his hand. “You held your forearm.” She then held out her hand. “Your turn for show and tell.”

Sans’ face grew red and he pulled his arm back. “Hell no!”

“I didn’t exactly permit you to look at mine, ya know. You’re the one who decided to open up.”

His face grew redder in embarrassment, but he sat there, pouting a little. “Dun know why,” he muttered.

“Because you’ve been there, and you want someone there for you.”

His face grew redder, but he sighed. “If I show you, will ya stop makin’ such embarrassin’ comments?”

“No promises,” she half smiled.

He groaned a little, but he pulled up his coat sleeve a little, showing some scars along the bone. “Yer right, I understand what yer going through, sorta. Dun know the specifics or nuttin’, but… I’ll be honest, never gone that far,” he said, motioning to her arm. “I dun wanna die.”

“Still helps to have the emotional pain turn into physical, huh?”

He blinked. “Y-yeah…” he said softly, looking her over. “So… dun think I’m over steppin’ at this point… but why ya wanna die, sweetheart? Did someone do sumthin’? Cuz I can go kick their ass.”

“Just… a lot of things,” she said softly. “I’ve been alone for a long time… no friends, no family… just… nothing. I recently found… well, he found me, really… we met totally by accident and honestly, it was the most fun I’d ever had. Had a similar mentality as you. Tried to kill me, not that he could.”

“Yeah, ya got some crazy shit going on, not surprised. But ya didn’t let him, right?”

“No. Well… sort of? I was desperate for any kind of interaction, I didn’t really fight him, not wanting to scare him off. I just… let him hit me. Ran me through,” she laughed, which made Sans just pale.

“Ran ya through??”

“Relax, it’s better,” she said, patting her stomach. “I… it’s really hard to kill me. I’m not immortal or anything, but it’s a lot harder. But it… well, it started… us getting to know each other. He realized he couldn’t kill me. Like you, he just kinda… gave up.” Maybe that was a Sans thing, she didn’t know. “And we started talking… he was interesting… and we started hanging out.”

“So ya finally got a bud ta hang wit? Did he do sumthin’?”

“Yeah… well…” she sighed. “We got into a fight. He destroyed something I cared about… not irreplaceable or anything, but he did it to hurt me, I think… then we started shouting and… I don’t know, he blasted me.”

Sans rose a brow, looking concerned. “…blasted?”

“Like yours,” she mentioned and his eyes grew wide.

“He hit ya fuckin’ laser?!”

She laughed a little. “Yeah, I guess he did.”

He stared at her. “Damn ya are hard ta kill.” He then examined her. “That… that was what I saw before, right? The damage? It barely did anything ta ya.”

“Yeah, few burns… won’t take those long to heal up. The cuts are from the crystal he threw me into with it…”

“It seems like yer not mad at ‘im, though ya should be in my opinion. Why did ya…” he glanced at her arm.

“Like I said, a lot of things…” she said softly. “I don’t make friends… any time I do, something like this happens.”

“You get blasted with lasers a lot?”

She chuckled a little. “No, not blasters… just… people I get close to… either they die, get hurt, or betray me in some way, I suppose… so don’t take it personally, I appreciate this, but I don’t think it’s a good idea for you to get too invested.”

“Sweetheart, I know we just met ‘n all, but ya should know, I don’t really do what I’m told. Unless it’s by da boss, and then it’s spitefully,” he said with a fang-filled grin, his golden tooth bright in the open. “I can’t really tell ya what to do, I dun even listen to my own advice. But, if ya wanna talk…”

She turned to look at him, smiling softly. “Ya know I might just make your brother try and kill me next time, right?”

“Heh, he won’t hold back, but if ya can handle bein’ blasted like that, I don’t think he’s gonna do too much damage to ya. Not that I want ya ta test that theory,” he turned to her. “He’d kill me if he knew I was talkin’ ta ya like this.”

“Well, he won’t know then,” she told him, then extended her hand. “Give me your phone, I’ll put my number in. That way, when you need someone to talk to-“

“Hey, I’m supposed ta be helpin’ you,” Sans protested.

“Because you want help too. You’ve already done a lot, I owe you one now.”

Sans stared at her, before sighing a little. He gave her his phone and she put in her number, saving it for him. He took it back and he stared at the contact. “Jewel, huh? The name’s Sans.”

She smiled a little. Oh how she knew that. “Still gonna call you, Red, sorry.” She then looked at him a little. “Or Edgy,” she chuckled.

“Hey,” he laughed a little. “Eh, guess I can let it slide for ya, but dun go callin’ me that in front of no one.”

“We’ll see,” she smiled at him before standing up.

“Wait,” Sans called out after her. “Yer not goin’ back to that asshole, are ya?”

“I don’t know…” she said softly. “But I don’t want to get you in trouble with your brother. Also, I do need to find a spot to heal up.”

“That asshole needs ta apologize, I dun know what that fight was ‘bout, but ya need to have more respect fer yerself,” he said, looking at her.

Jewel turned, looking down at him. “You too. I don’t know everything, but you need to stand up to your brother sometimes. You don’t have to kill if you don’t want to, ya know.”

Sans rubbed the back of his neck, nervous about that idea, but he blinked when she offered him a hand. He hesitantly took it, standing up with her help. He was surprised when she suddenly hugged him, almost jumping out of his coat.

“Sans, remember, it’s okay. You’re not alone, and your feelings are valid, even if no one else listens to them.”

Sans blinked before he slowly put his arms around her. “Heh, yer pretty sappy sweetheart,” he said softly, before pulling back and looking up at her. “You remember, now, yer the toughest broad I ever met, the only thing holdin’ ya back is you. Dun ever let some asshole make ya feel worthless again, okay? If one does, ya come tell me, I’ll take care of ‘im for ya.”

She chuckled. “That was pretty sappy yourself, Red,” Jewel softly replied before pulling back. “Thanks for cheering me up.”

“Ya go get that arm looked at, okay?” he told her as he let her go.

“It’ll heal okay. But, I’m gonna go think more on that asshole, okay? See if it was worth it.”

“Dun go thinkin’ too hard. Sleep on it, best medicine.”

She chuckled a little and waved, before teleporting away in front of him. Sans stared at where she was, almost wondering if he himself had dreamed it… but the blood told a different story.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TL:DR - UnderFell Sans, now nicknamed Red, found a human and tried to capture the soul, only for Jewel to freak out on him in her depressive state, injure herself, and the two began to talk. Red helps her with her demons and they eventually part ways.


	5. Chapter 5 - Always Strings Attached

# Chapter 5 – Always Strings Attached

It had been weeks since he had seen her… Error sat in the anti-void, holding a little puppet he had created after it had gotten too quiet… he usually liked the quiet, but he had gotten used to Jewel being there… she stayed so long, sometimes even falling asleep in that chair. She had openly admitted that she had been craving contact, but Error… couldn’t even admit it to himself. Even as he held a puppet version of the human he had been keeping an eye out for as he traveled the multiverse. He had killed some AUs to drive her out… hoping she would show up to stop him at the very least… but even Ink didn’t show up. Was she with him? That thought alone infuriated him.

“She left me for him, I know it!” he started glitching, the thought alone becoming his reality. “She was always playing me, I don’t know why I’m pretending like she wasn’t!” he started getting louder, his fist clenching around the little doll. “There’s no way she would have been my friend, she draws like that damn squid! They’re probably laughing about me behind my back! I can’t believe I was going to show her Undernovela!!”

His glitching was getting out of control as he threw the puppet hard on the ground and he summoned a bone to run it through, but he stopped right before the bone hit the little doll. He stared at it, his hand starting to shake as it held the bone. “Why didn’t you move?” he asked with a soft, shaking voice. He stared at the doll before the bone disappeared as he slowly got down on his knees, carefully picking up the little puppet.

“You tried to kill me!”

“You dodged it before!”

“You had a blaster in my face and fired in two seconds, what did you expect?!”

“I…” Error stared down at the puppet, whom he was having a full conversation with as if it was truly her he was speaking to.

“You’re a horrible person and I want nothing to do with you!” the puppet turned away from him, moving as if on its own with his strings.

“No! Jewel, I-!” His vision was becoming dark as his glitching hit a critical point. The puppet stopped moving as he fully crashed, unable to cope.

It took Error longer to come out of this crash than any other. Then again, it wasn’t the first in these weeks. He kept working himself up and then the not knowing… that was the worst part. It was almost like when he first woke up in the anti-void… feeling like he knew someone but couldn’t reach out… only this time he could go looking for her. But somehow she was avoiding him… or did he..?

“She couldn’t have died from that… right?” he asked as he held the little puppet. She had survived worse… especially from him. But what if she found something she couldn’t handle? “What if she’s hurt somewhere…” was a thought that crossed his mind. But he had no way to check on her, which made him all the more unstable. “Why do I even care?!” he roared out into the emptiness. But he held that puppet to his chest.

He really shouldn’t be doing this. He had too many crashes, he needed to rest. But he was so flustered, unable to figure out his emotions, he just had to take it out on something! He opened a portal to a random AU and just jumped down. He was going to forego his usual stalking method and just start burning it all to the ground. But he soon realized he wasn’t in Snowdin… He wasn’t even underground. He covered his face from the blaring sun. He had visited lots of AUs… but most were underground. The sun was something different.

He then heard whispers and gasps. He looked up and saw humans just staring at him. His eyes went wide as this was not what he was used to in these AUs. He couldn’t make out everything, but people were staring, commenting on him being a monster. He started to shake, about ready to just start blasting these humans.

“Hey, knock it off!” he heard in a familiar voice. Jewel was glaring at the humans staring as she walked over. “You don’t know the guy’s story, back off!” she growled at them, the humans slowly starting to scatter as she blocked their view of him.

“J-Jewel?” he questioned in disbelief.

“Put your hood up, Error,” she whispered to him.

He didn’t know why he listened to her, but he did. She directed him where to go, staying behind to kind of shield him from view. Only so much she could do without touching him. But it didn’t take long for them to find a large tree that shaded a hillside outside of town.

“Why are you here?” she then asked, now that they were alone.

He blinked at her, pulling his hood down. “It’s an AU,” he looked at her as if it was the most obvious answer in the world.

“This AU? Really? Do you even know where you are?”

Error tried to hide a blush on his cheeks by looking angry. “Well, obviously.”

“Then why were you caught like a deer in headlights over there?”

“A what in what?” he looked confused.

“Never mind,” she sighed, sitting down against the tree.

Error watched her, and just began to stare. Slowly, his emotions started boiling over. “So… this is where you’ve been hiding?” he seethed.

Jewel looked up at him, cautious, but didn’t respond. He wouldn’t like anything that was about to come out of her mouth right now.

“Answer me, damn it!!” he roared at her. When she didn’t respond right away, he started to lose it. “I knew it, you were with that stupid ink stain!!” His strings lashed out at her, grabbing her soul, even though he knew he couldn’t remove it, he wanted to strangle it. His strings also wrapped around her arms and legs, and he squeezed.

He didn’t get the reaction he was expecting. She didn’t cry out, she didn’t fight. She looked… dead. That was when he saw the blood coming from her left arm, pouring down the more he squeezed.

“Just get it over with already.”

Error stood in disbelief, just staring at her, confusion and uncertainty on his face.

“What are you waiting for?!” she suddenly shouted at him. “Fucking kill me already!”

In a second, Error let her go completely, causing her to fall to the ground as he stared at her in shock.

“What? Going soft on me?” she growled, standing up, her arm bleeding heavily from the pressure he put on the still-healing wound. “Come on, this is what you wanted before, wasn’t it?” she held her arms up and open, leaving herself vulnerable to him. “Go ahead! Blast me, run me through! Put me out of my fucking misery!” she roared, tears in her eyes.

Error found himself frozen, starting to glitch heavily. He couldn’t comprehend any of this… Finally, he managed to get out, his voice glitching more than normal. “I-I don’t…” he stuttered softly.

“Fucking DO IT!!” she screamed at him, making Error jump, finally crashing.

Tears were running down her face by this point. She didn’t want him to crash, damn it. She sat back down, leaning against the tree, running her hand over her face. This wasn’t what she wanted… but that was why she didn’t… seek him out.

Error slowly came to, blinking his eyes clear of the error codes. It took a few tries but when it did clear, he wished it hadn’t. Blue tinted his black cheeks as he stared at the scene in front of him. Jewel had her sleeve up as she attempted to bandage it, revealing the small hole in her arm… it had started to heal, but he could see her bones through it.

“What happened?” he quickly demanded. “Who hurt you?! I swear, I’ll kill everyone they fucking care about-!”

“I did it, so shut up!” she barked, getting over his raising voice, causing him to stop and look at her. “Why the hell do you even care, anyway? You’re the one who tried to blast me through the anti-void.”

Error couldn’t believe what he was hearing. “Y-you did it? But how? You can’t do damage like that! That looks like—“

“A bone, yes,” she cut him off. “I found another Sans after I left. I took one of the bones, broke it in half and pierced my arm with it. Happy?”

He stared at her, his mind very, very slowly starting to catch on. “…no.” He moved to sit down, looking at her. “Why would you… what was the point? And why aren’t you healing? It took you less time to recover from my attacks, and I’m one of the strongest around! It’s not hissing or turning black like your other wounds…”

She sighed, stopping trying to mess with the bandages. It was hard to do one-handed and she didn’t exactly make it in an easy spot. “Self-inflicted wounds are different. I…” she sighed. “It’s complicated. Let’s just say it’s a punishment for a lack of judgment…”

“But why?” Error looked at her.

“Because I want to die,” she said softly. “I’m tired, Error… I’ve got nothing. Power is meaningless to me, and I’m tired of being alone,” she said, tears starting to line her eyes.

It finally clicked. This was his fault. She was fine, happy… until he threw his temper tantrum. His hands hovered above his knees. He wanted to help… but his fear kept him back.

Jewel felt his blue strings gently attach to her fingertips as he pulled her hand toward him. He took the bandages with his strings and masterfully danced them around her arm, some letting go as others took over to keep her arm from being wrapped in string.

“I don’t… I don’t want to kill you…” he managed to get out. That was hard enough to get out and it didn’t sound nearly as good as he wanted it to. “You are… the one thing in this multiverse I don’t want to destroy.”

Jewel stared at him as he bandaged her arm. “Error…” She sighed a little. “I’m sorry… I don’t… really do the whole friend thing… it’s hard for me… people run off or get hurt…”

Error stared at her. “Is that why you won’t answer me?”

She nodded slightly. “I’m afraid, Error… I like you, I really do. But I’ve… got issues, with my powers for starters… I can’t… fully control it. It gets… worse, when I’m emotionally invested in someone. Especially with a job like yours. You’re constantly fighting, and the thought of you getting hurt... Friends are everything to me, and I’m afraid to make any… but I don’t want to be alone anymore.”

He stared at her. He could relate to that more than he wanted to admit. Getting close to people was hard… he destroyed things, he wasn’t… a friendly person. But, despite it all, deep down… that was what he wanted.

Her wound had been wrapped up, and he used his strings to lift her up, helping her stand. “Let’s go home… it’s bright out here,” he said as he opened up a portal back to the anti-void. He was about to head in when he saw Jewel hesitate.

He sighed a little. “I promise, I won’t attack you again.”

“I… don’t care about that, Error. I can take the physical hits… it hurts, but I can take it. It’s…”

Error stared at her for a long moment, before reaching into the anti-void, pulling out the little Jewel plush puppet. He then extended it to her, hiding a blush by raising his shoulders, trying to hide his face in his coat. “Here.”

She looked at him confused as she slowly took the puppet from him.

“I, uh… said I’d introduce you to my friends, right? Well… there’s my newest one,” he said, hiding the growing blush on his cheeks. “She can be your friend too…”

She stared at the plush in her hand, seeing the details that made it look like her. A small smile grew on her face. “You made a plush of me?”

A jolt of embarrassment rang through Error. “It’s a puppet!” he tried to defend, though that didn’t seem to help his case as he stared at her, that smile, it made his blush worse. But then, she surprised him, coming back over and putting it in his hand again.

“Thank you, Error. But it’s a little weird to be my own friend, no?”

“I, uh,” he hesitated, but he wanted to help her, he didn’t know why. “I have more. Most of them are other Sanses, but…”

She chuckled, which made him stop talking. “Do you have one of you?”

He blinked. “Of… me? That would be weird.” The very point she just made.

“Well… if you want to make me a friend… I’d like it to be you.”

Error stared at her, more blue tinting his black cheeks.

“I mean, if it’s awkward, it’s okay. I just like your seam work. I can make stuff like this too, but I’m not as good.”

Error stared at her. “You can sew?” he finally asked.

“Yeah, a bit. I make a few things, simple clothes are easier for me though.”

Error stared at her for a bit more before motioning to the open portal. “Come on. I’ll get the snacks if you set up the chairs. I still need to show you Undernovela.”She blinked as she watched him start to step in. “And… we can discuss this more… where no one else can hear us…” he muttered subconsciously.

Jewel smiled a little as she followed him into the anti-void, watching the portal close behind them. “Error?”

“Yeah?”

“Thank you…”


	6. Chapter 6 - Trust and Pixels

# Chapter 6 – Trust and Pixels

It had been a tense few days with how fragile they both were. Error didn’t admit how exhausted he had been from all his crashes, but somehow, Jewel seemed to know. He didn’t want to focus on what had happened, his insecurities. He pushed them down. He tried to throw chocolate at the problem. A lot. He was eating a lot of it. Jewel wouldn’t eat a lot, but he’d force her to take a few pieces here and there, trying to do what he could to make her feel better. Chocolate, his puppets, and Undernovela. And he had been willing to re-watch it from the beginning for her. Not that it was much, but he was always missing out on new episodes for this.

It had been strange… he felt compelled to open up to her. They spent all their time in the anti-void lately… but even he could tell she was getting a little stir crazy. He couldn’t blame her, he did too. So he took her to the one spot in the multiverse he enjoyed to visit.

“You’ve got to loosen up your stitches, you’re not going to get the hook through,” Error explained as he sat beside Jewel in Outertale, an amused smirk on his lips as he watched her struggle. He was trying to teach her to crochet. He was good at that, he was still trying to get the hang of knitting. He could try and teach her that, but that did require more and with her injury, he figured this would be easier.

“It just feels like it’s going to fall apart.”

“You’re going to tear the yarn, and it won’t feel like that once you get more to it.”

Jewel put down her chain, letting the hook float in the space as she rubbed her face. “Wow, this is so much harder than it looks.”

Error chuckled a little. “And you say I get frustrated easily.”

Jewel stuck her tongue out at him. “Oh, you’ve got the shortest temper I’ve ever seen. We’re just doing stuff you find relaxing. You wouldn’t be so chill if I was teaching you to draw.”

“Why, pray tell, would I ever want to learn to draw?” he countered.

“Didn’t say you’d _want_ to, just a point.”

The two of them chuckled a little, Error watched as she rubbed her arm. “It’s still not better?” he asked, a little concern in his voice.

“Told you, it doesn’t heal like the rest of my wounds. And I did a number on myself… Probably should give the lessons a rest, it hurts to use the arm, even just to hold it.”

“You’ve only just started. Is it really that bad?”

“Be happy you never have to deal with a flesh wound.”

Error let out a half-hearted chuckle. “Was that a pun?”

“It is now,” she smiled at him.

He smirked a little, turning, “Well,” he grabbed her crotchet supplies with his strings, tossing them back into the anti-void, before pulling out some of the puppets he had, “how about we do something that doesn’t hurt your arm?”

“I’m not much of a puppeteer,” Jewel admitted with a chuckle. “Then again, never really had the opportunity.”

“Well, these are onehanded puppets, but I have hand puppets if you prefer. I have an old one of Classic somewhere.”

“Well, at least he’s easy, sleep, puns and “do you wanna have a bad time” one-liners.”

“Think you can set up a little crystal banister so I can control more than two?”

“Not many things to pivot your strings on in space,” she grinned as she got it in her head, snapping a small little stage into existence.

It was quite entertaining, Error put on quite the show for Jewel with his puppets, letting her join in when she felt like it, rolling with whatever she decided to do. It was pretty out of character for the Sanses, just random, crazy bullshit. Some of it sounded legit, the rest was totally out there, and Jewel was laughing so hard tears were in her eyes.

“Are you okay?” Error asked, confused.

“Haha, yeah,” she spoke between laughs, having to catch her breath. “Why?”

“You’re crying… but you’re laughing?”

She coughed, trying to get herself to stop for a second, but she couldn’t quite get the giggles down. “Happy tears. It happens sometimes when you laugh too hard.”

“Humans are weird,” Error said, still looking a little confused, but he smiled a bit. “Oh, let me have Classic,” he said, reaching for the puppet. He wasn’t paying attention, just going for it, so when his hand bumped against her, he jolted and unintentionally smacked her hand away, dropping Classic into the void around them, causing him to float.

“Error, are you okay?” Jewel quickly asked as her hand extended toward him, just out of reflex.

“DON’T TOUCH ME!” he cried out, pulling away from her.

“Error, I won’t, I’m not!”

She watched as he recoiled, his glitching starting to get intense. She knew he hated being touched, but he was the one who touched her that time… did it matter? But he held onto the puppets… that’s when she got an idea. The Jewel puppet, she summoned it forth since he didn’t bring it from the anti-void and quickly took one of the controls from the other puppets to put it on her. It wasn’t hard, just strings tied around the limbs.

“Error. Error, look at me,” she said, controlling the puppet in his line of sight, getting closer to him as his vision was getting worse as he got closer to crashing.

Error stared at the little puppet, still shaking and glitching, uncertain.

“It’s okay, you know I won’t hurt you, right?” The little puppet put its tiny hand out toward him. “I wouldn’t touch you without your okay.”

Error slowly focused on the puppet as Jewel talked for it, and his hand slowly reached out to touch the outstretched puppet hand.

“See?” she said softly, the other puppet hand coming in, gently touching his finger as he held onto the first. “It’s okay.”

Error was on edge, but the puppet touching him didn’t bother him. He was used to that texture, though inwardly, he felt conflicted. He could hear Jewel but saw the puppet. Should he be freaking out right now? Should he not? He slowly took the puppet, pulling it to him, causing Jewel to let go of the controls as he put it to his chest.

“It’s okay,” he heard again, and he looked up, seeing Jewel sitting close, but enough of a distance away from him.

They sat in relative silence for a good several minutes, before Jewel glanced back, having seen the classic puppet floating away. “Heh, you might want to reel in Classic over there,” she said softly, causing Error to look up, doing just that. He pulled it in, and Jewel caught the little thing, putting it down with the rest of the pile.

Error still didn’t talk, emotions conflicting inside of him. That… was a very different experience than what he was used to from being touched.

Jewel just watched him, her heart breaking a little. “You know… I have no idea how to help you right now,” she said softly, getting his attention as he looked to her. “I’d… normally offer a hug, but I doubt that’d help the situation any right now.”

“Please don’t…” he muttered, holding that plush a little closer.

“I know… but you know I’d never hurt you, right?”

“It doesn’t have anything to do with that,” he finally spoke up. “I just… can’t handle being touched. It freaks me out, I just…”

“But you were the one that touched me this time,” she pointed out.

“I still wasn’t expecting it.”

“So if you are… could you do it?”

Error was uneasy with this line of questioning, but he looked at her. “Maybe… I still probably wouldn’t like it.”

She watched him carefully, not wanting to push but… “If you’re willing… can we try something?”

He eyed her, warily. “What?”

“I just… want to do something, but it does require a small amount of touching. Just a finger. Think you can handle that?”

Just the thought was filling him with anxiety. But… when the puppet touched him with her voice… it calmed him down… which was against what he thought would happen. “J-Just… give me a minute…” he muttered as he calmed down, trying to steel himself for this. They sat there in silence for a few minutes, before slowly, his hand moved away from the doll.

“S-so what do I… have to do?”

Jewel smiled softly, patient, calm. “Extend your pinkie finger like this,” she said, doing the same with her hand, “Before gently closing it around mine, and I’ll do the same.”

Error hesitated, moving slower than even he thought he should be, but he slowly moved closer to her. He was grateful she didn’t move, and he made the initial contact, which sent a jolt through him, and he had to fight to not pull away when Jewel gently closed her pinkie around his. This was a lot for him, but he was really putting the effort in.

Slowly, he realized nothing was happening, nothing was going to happen. “W-what’s the point of this?” he then asked.

Jewel held a soft, genuine smile. “I promise,” she said, Error slowly catching on, “that I will never hurt you. That I will always be there to protect you. Because you’re my best friend, Error.”

Error stared at her with wide eyes before quickly pulling his hand away from her. “Don’t make stupid promises,” he muttered.

“I mean it, Error.”

“No, you don’t. The second you make a different friend, I’m out,” he argued, getting a little hostile, mostly at himself. “Even if it’s with another dirty glitch like that ink stain! You like him, right?! You gave him a whole world to create!” he growled at her.

“And how many have I given you to destroy?”

Error was caught off guard, staring at her.

“If you’re going to quantify it, let’s compare,” she argued, calmly. “I took Ink to one AU, that wanted his help. I’ve taken you to five AUs that wanted to die. I’m not friends with Ink. I don’t hate him like you do, but I’m not friends with him. He offered me friendship, but I haven’t seen him since. You know how he is with that whole bit too, is that something I would jump on?” she asked him. “But Error, you are my friend. I know we argue, you have a temper, and I’m not exactly the most stable either, but damn it, I care about you! I know what I said before, but I… well, it was hard enough to stay mad at you when we fought last time. I can say I don’t want friends all I want, but the truth is in how I feel. And yeah, it’s hard, I’m not going to lie. And I know it’s not going to get any easier, neither of us are the most open people, but…” she paused, looking up at him. “Besides, I’ve killed innocent people for you. Granted, it was a bit of a mercy killing for those AUs, but it still bothers me.”

“You said you’d help, you volunteered! I didn’t make you!” he protested.

“I know what I said. And I can do it, but it doesn’t mean I like it. I used to, that’s for sure…” she said softly. “I used to be like you, just hating everyone, especially myself, so I took it out on those around… I still have those feelings, and when I get mad, sometimes I… well, I am like you with the temper. Just want to go and burn everything to the ground, wreck everything to get the feelings out… that’s kind of what this is,” she said, putting her hand over the wound in her arm, “but in a different set of emotions. There’s… a lot… and I’ve actively been trying to not give in to those emotions, but as you can see I’m not the greatest…”

Error stared at her, a little frustrated, but he sighed. “You don’t… have to help me, you know,” he said softly. “I’ve been destroying AUs just fine before you came along. You don’t have to be involved.”

“Error, sending you to the AUs isn’t my problem,” she said, and he looked up, surprised. “Things need to die, that’s a fact. It’s just that… well… killing the people in them… I know why they need to die… it’s better than suffering alone, with nothing… when you’re an empty shell and just…” A tear fell and Error looked a little concerned.

“This is how you feel, isn’t it?” he asked, moving as close as he could without touching her. When she softly nodded, he wanted to be concerned, but his frustration at not being able to do anything about it just made him angry. “So, what am I then?” he snapped.

When Jewel looked up at him, confused, he continued. “You keep saying you don’t want to be alone! Well, I’m right here, damn it! You wouldn’t leave me alone, so I let you in! I let you stay in the anti-void, clutter it up with your fucking colorful crystals! I fucking let you touch me!!”

“Error,” Jewel tried to gently call, but he shot up, pacing, hands on his head.

“What do you keep me around for?! Am I only around because you want me to kill you?!” he then turned, his face tinted blue. “Is that all I am to you? Some murderous fuckwit that you can use to end your life because you can’t do it?!” He was starting to glitch, his form getting more pixelated and distorted. “I fucking hate everything!! I want everything to die!! I’ll admit it! But I d-don’t…” he started to really start glitching, the rest of his speech distorted to unrecognizable sounds.

“Error! Error, look at me!” Jewel said, moving in closer to him, trying with all her might not to grab onto him. “That’s not it at all! You’re all I have!” He couldn’t stop the glitching, but he stopped moving enough to where it seemed he was looking in her direction, his eyes having gone before his speech was halfway through. “I don’t mean to make it sound like I’m not grateful that you’re here. I can’t help the way I feel sometimes. Just like you can’t help being angry or afraid of being touched. I don’t… I know what I said before… but I was broken… you said you didn’t want to be my friend, you attacked me and… I shouldn’t have said it. But I meant my promise, Error. You are my best friend, I’ll never stop trying to protect you. I just… can’t do everything with you.”

Error stared in her direction, though the look of sadness on his face was evident, even in this heavily glitching state. He tried to reach out for her, but when he felt her hand close to his own, he quickly pulled back, the glitching getting worse.

“Error,” she called softly. “Come on. It’s okay. Calm down. I’m right here. I’m not going to touch you.”

“I-I can’t see,” he admitted, through the glitching sounds. “I can’t…” He was paranoid that they were so close, that he couldn’t see any of her movements.

“Then,” she said softly, “use your strings.” She gently put her hands out. “My hands are in front of yours. Lace my fingers like you did before. You’ll be able to feel where I am without touching me.”

Error stared at her, uncertain, but he listened. His strings tied around his own fingers, then, slowly, they found their way to Jewel’s, tying around them. He pulled the strings taught, so he could feel how close they were. He started to slowly calm down, but he then felt Jewel pull on the strings.

“It’s okay, Error,” she said, moving her hand up, making him touch his own cheek with the strings.

Error’s eyes widened at the action. He wasn’t moving… but it wasn’t her touching him… he wasn’t sure how to feel about it, but… the comforting words in her voice with the pressure on his cheek, even from his own hand…

“J-Jewel… I-I need to go b-back,” he started glitching heavily, unable to focus. “I c-can’t… on my own…” he managed to mutter out.

“You can’t open a portal?”

“N-no it… t-t-took to m-much concent-tration to use m-my strings…”

He was really vulnerable… She knew… he knew, what this meant. She glanced back at the puppets, summoning a crystal chest around them, grabbing them before snapping them back to where she needed it. Easier to transport. Then, she moved closer, Error curling up as he felt the strings gain slack.

“I can touch your coat if it’s easier, Error,” she tried. “On the sleeve? My magic can’t travel through yours, the strings won’t be enough.”

Error slowly nodded, steeling himself, though it was obvious he was uncomfortable. He started trembling as the slack in the strings increased. Jewel, for her part, was as gentle as she could be. She tried to be unnoticeable as she gently grabbed his sleeve, teleporting them back to the anti-void as quickly as she could. As soon as they were there, she let him go and pulled the strings taught again.

“It’s okay,” she quickly spoke up. “We’re back in the anti-void. You’re safe.”

Error started to glitch more, and it just made Jewel panic a little.

“E-Error…” she pulled at the strings.

“G-gonna… c-crash…” he managed to mutter. “C-can’t…” His voice was low, soft, like he just couldn’t fight it anymore.

Jewel put a hand to her mouth, just… wanting to help him but she couldn’t. So she did the only thing she could. She snapped a bed into existence, a red crystal frame with a softer red mattress. It looked hard, but as she pulled Error to it with the strings, he felt himself sink into it, unsure of what he was in. But he couldn’t argue. The lighter red moved like water while the rest of it was solid. The pillows were similar as she just led him to it with the strings attached to her fingers.

“Jewel… w-what?” Error tried to ask, but he felt the slack in the strings again, and he tensed up.

“I’m taking off the strings, Error. You’re safe, you’re home. And you need to rest.” She snapped a blanket in and gently draped it over him, careful not to touch him except with the blanket itself. “I’ll be nearby. Just call me if you need anything.”

Error was looking up at where he heard her voice, the glitching was starting to calm down, but his eyes were almost closed. He had never taken this long to crash, it had never felt so… draining before. It looked like he wanted to say something before his eyes closed and he went limp.

Jewel just stared at him for a little while, praying he was all right. That was bad, even for him… and as much as she wanted to stay close, she knew that it wasn’t in his best interest. Still, she summoned the chest of puppets and brought out the Jewel puppet, and put it near him on the bed. It was the closest she could be to him right now.


	7. Chapter 7 - Fears

# Chapter 7 - Fears

Jewel was flung across the anti-void, her clothes in tatters. Blood poured from her mouth, wounds all over her body hissed. She was doubled over, coughing up some of the blood, a tooth falling out of her jaw. She was supporting herself on an arm, the other holding her stomach as she continued to cough before she looked up at her attacker…

Error held a maniacal smile as he pulled strings from his eyes, his unsteady grin only getting more unhinged as he suddenly strung her up, spreading her legs and arms far away from her. He summoned a series of bones around and had them all pierce through her abdomen at once, causing her to scream out. Tears flew from her eyes due to the pain, blood dripping down her chin as it was forced up. But, almost as instantly, the wounds started hissing, but the bones remained.

“E-Error…” she managed to weakly call out. “W-why..? Why…” She was cut off by his hand grabbing her throat, strangling her.

“Why?” he parroted in a dark voice he had never once used with her before. “Because you should have known better. You don’t belong, why would I leave a dirty glitch like you alive? Especially one so foolish as to lower their guard around me. The only thing I’m good for is death and destruction!”

His fist continued to squeeze, Jewel gasping for breath. “Well, look at that. The one time I’m not afraid to touch you,” he feigned sweetness as he finally squeezed until there was an audible snap, her eyes losing all their life as her head fell, the rest of her body going limp.

“NOOoo!”

Error shot up in the unfamiliar bed, blanket flying and Jewel puppet falling. He had tears lining his eyes, fear tinted blue on his cheeks, a cold sweat all over his body. He quickly scanned around, jumping out of the bed.

“Jewel!!” he cried out, desperately.

Error stopped when he saw her, asleep in the recliner. He could barely breathe, soft, short gasps leaving his mouth as he looked down at her, sleeping so peacefully, paying very close attention to the rise and falling of her chest, making sure he wasn’t seeing things. A soft hiccup escaped him as he almost reached for her, but all he saw was his hand on her neck and he pulled back, walking backward from her. His hand covered his mouth as he kept walking away, his mind racing.

He had fallen onto the ground, nothing to trip over, but his legs gave out under him. He tried to get the images out of his head, but they lingered… her face… her screams… No, it wasn’t real, it wasn’t real… but it could be…

A few hours went by before Jewel finally awoke. She stretched, letting out a tiny little whine as she did.

“What was that?” she heard Error question and she turned to look, seeing him on the floor nearby, fabric scattered around on the floor.

“Oh, you’re awake,” she said as she got up, walking over to him

“You didn’t answer the question,” he countered, still looking at her.

“It’s just a sound I make when I stretch, nothing to really answer,” she chuckled. But as she got over to him, she looked at him a little worried. “How are you feeling?”

Error was silent, turning his attention back to what was in his hands. He had just about finished when she woke up, so he just lifted it up and put it almost right in her hands. “So? How is it?”

Jewel blinked as she slowly took the plush from him, smiling a little. It was the plush of him. “Aw, Error, it looks just like you. Though, are the slippers detachable? Cuz they might get lost if they are,” she teased.

“Oh, ha,” he playfully sneered. She handed the plush back to him to finish as she sat down beside him. He continued to work but was silent.

“Error, are you okay?”

“I’m fine,” he said, a little shortly.

“You don’t sound fine. That crash didn’t… hurt, did it? Nothing long term?”

He sighed a little. “It’s not comfortable, but no, it won’t do damage. Would you quit worrying now?”

“Why won’t you tell me?”

“Because I don’t know, okay?!” he snapped at her, before realizing that he did, calming down. “I... I can’t tell you what I don’t know. Can you just drop it?”

Jewel stared at him for a moment before clenching her fist. She knew that feeling and it was always hard for her. She could only imagine it was the same for him. “Sorry…”

Error looked over, seeing that face only made him feel worse. He finished up the plush and put a few strings around it. Gently, he placed a tiny puppet hand on hers, which made her look up at him.

“Maybe he’ll be a better friend to you than me,” Error said softly. “At least you can touch him,” he said, hiding his face in his jacket, lifting it to do so.

Jewel gently took the little plush, unable to not hold him against her. “Error, it’s not your fault. You can’t help it.”

“It doesn’t matter. You even said when we first met you crave contact. I can’t give you that…”

“Well, no…” he flinched when she said it. It was one thing when he said it, but when she agreed, that hurt more than he thought it would. “But it’s not everything.”

“But it’s what you want!” he shouted at her. “I can’t do anything but kill things!”

“Not true. You made this, for me. You didn’t have to. You have a good heart, Error.”

“I’m a skeleton, you idiot! I don’t have a heart!”

“You know what I mean, Error! Why are you so hostile?”

“Just leave me alone!!” he roared at her about to storm off.

A red crystal shot up in front of Error, blocking his path. He turned to Jewel, his eyes glowing, teeth gritting. “I said leave me alone!!”

Strings flew and grabbed her wrists, bones summoned at his side. It was in that moment he flashed to his dream. He started shaking, the strings loosening and letting her fall, and his bones disappeared. He held a hand to his head, backing up until he hit her crystal.

“Leave me alone,” he shakily said, starting to slide down the crystal.

“Error…” Jewel knelt down beside him, though he avoided eye contact with her. He was silent, but at least he wasn’t moving. She tried to get him to look at her, but he kept purposely avoiding her. So instead, she just sat down beside him. “You know you can tell me anything, right?” she offered. “And I know you won’t take me up on it, but any time you need a hug, a hand to hold, something, anything to make you feel better, I’m here. Okay?”

“Why do you always think touching is going to help?” he muttered.

“Because it does… but I suppose in your case it wouldn’t, unless you can get past the fear. I don’t know if the amount of comfort I could give you would be that strong…”

“Sound pretty full of yourself right now,” he muttered.

“Well, actually…” she started but thought better of it. “Never mind… I suppose it doesn’t matter.”

“What?” he muttered. “Just say it.”

“I just… have something for you,” she said slowly. “I don’t even know if you’d like it, but… after yesterday…”

Error slowly turned and looked at her. “Something… for me?” he questioned. No, that… couldn’t be right…

She could have snapped, but… she slowly got up and walked over to the chair where she had been sleeping. There had been a little box on the table, hidden amongst the food she had that she hadn’t cleaned up just yet. She picked it up and slowly walked back, sitting back down beside him. Error had watched her walk with purpose, though her footsteps seemed uneasy. He made a mental note he had some cleaning to do, but for right now, he just focused on her… and that small box. She extended it to him, her hand on one corner. He carefully took it and opened the box.

Inside was a small heart-shaped crystal on a chain. It was in the position of a human soul, which he felt was a little odd for him, given what he did with them. But he noticed this crystal was different than what she had so casually summoned. It was a more… detailed cut, the crystal itself seemed more glass-like, and it was clear, unlike the red or purple he had seen. He had yet to see the blue…

“A… necklace?”

“It’s special. But you have to put it on and… well… open up, I suppose.”

“Open up?” he questioned, looking at her.

“You scared me yesterday,” she said softly. “And I couldn’t do anything to help you. I’m not good with words in the heat of the moment and I can’t touch you… So, I… well, I thought that… well… maybe there was another way to help comfort you.”

“How is a necklace supposed to comfort me?” he blatantly asked.

“Have you ever wondered where I get the crystals?” she asked.

Error blinked, not expecting that. “I’ve always just assumed you’ve made them with your powers. Like I can make bone.”

She chuckled softly. “No. My powers aren’t quite… like that. Well, I suppose in a way I do make them but, not like that. It’s like… how I can summon anything else in the world, ya know? I have to take it from somewhere else.”

Error stared at her, confused. “You and your riddles. Can’t you talk clearly for once?”

Another soft chuckle. “Well, I’ll try. See, the crystals… well…” she put a hand on her chest. “They come from my soul.”

Error sat up a little straighter, his eyes fixed on her. “Your soul? How..? That’s not a thing.”

“It… well…” she tried to explain it, but she decided to just simplify it. “So… you know I don’t have a… “place” right?” she asked him. “You have the anti-void here as your base, your home. I don’t have a physical spot I can go to like that. You remember when we met, right? The reset sent you back here, sent Ink where ever he goes. I would have gone into the code itself, literally inside of it. The only reason I was brought back here instead was because you had me tethered by my soul.”

“What does that have to… wait… are you saying your soul is your… “place”?”

“Pretty much,” she said softly. “I’m… well, it’s not safe for me to go back often. I can go whenever I want, or need to… but my physical body becomes incredibly vulnerable.”

“Need to? Why would you need to go into your own soul?”

“It’s complicated,” she said, gently scratching her cheek. “But one of the reasons is to heal up… my powers are amplified in there, so it’s like this weird… inception thing. Referencing when we first met again… you saw the black smoke. That’s essentially an emergency bandage. It stops the bleeding, covers the wounds and makes sure I don’t die immediately. The real work happens afterward. If I don’t go into my soul, I’ll still heal faster than normal humans, but it takes longer. So… that wound you gave me before… it only took me maybe a day and a half, two days to completely repair that way. If I stayed outside, like, just sitting here next to you, it would have taken a week, maybe? It more than halves my recovery time. But, again, at the cost of being exposed. I can’t return to my body until I’m healed if it’s a serious injury. So I don’t do it often.”

Error listened. That certainly explained a lot about her quick healing and being able to take hits that should kill Frisk in a second. “So… what’s it like in there?” he had to ask. “And how do you make the crystals?”

Jewel got a little somber as she answered his question. “It’s… hard to explain. The crystals are… well, they’re essentially crystalized karma, if that makes sense? It’s not quite black and white, if you’ll pardon the pun, considering the colors. I mean, I have a collection of white and black crystals too… but I don’t just… pull them out. The red, purple, and blue ones, they’re more… it has to do with emotions, various scenarios… they’re more common because everything causes them. The white and black ones are rarer… and even more so are the clear ones,” she said softly, looking at the pendant in his hand.

Error looked down at the clear crystal in his hand. “So… what does the clear crystal represent if the colorful ones are emotion?”

“The clear ones are what allow me to do one thing that most humans gave up.”

“What’s that?”

“Magic. Empathy, in particular. It’s how I’m so good at reading people. Especially emotional people. I could read you in two seconds.”

“Hey!”

She chuckled softly, looking down. “It’s not always accurate. People can fake it. Ink in particular is hard to read. But, generally, the closer I get to a person’s soul, the easier it is for me to get a read on who they are as a person. I won’t know details, like what they’ve been through to make them act a certain way… or why they’re afraid of something,” Error tried to hide a tiny blush in his coat, “but it does let me know what side of the karma scale they are.”

“Then why the hell did you pick me of all people to bond with? If you could read me so easily, you had to know I’m hardly on the good karma side.”

“Yeah, well, neither am I,” Jewel shrugged.

Error burst out laughing. “Oh, fuck no, I don’t believe that for a second! No way in hell you’re on the evil karma side!”

“Well, you’re not fully on it either.”

Error blinked. “Huh?”

“There’s more than just good and evil. Yeah, you’ve done some pretty bad things, but you’re not… well, you’re not the worst I’ve seen. I don’t think you’re as far down the slider as you believe you are.”

“Then where do you land?”

Jewel remained silent. “I don’t want to talk about it.”

Error blinked, looking at her concerned. “Jewel? Why is this suddenly bothering you? We were just talking about it.”

“You already said you didn’t believe me on where I am. And I… really don’t want to…”

“Jewel, I’m not going to judge you on it. That’s Classic’s job. Besides, I failed that thing in two seconds, he wouldn’t even say hi, or do his one-liner with me.”

“Well… let’s just say I’m pretty sure Classic wouldn’t like me either.”

Error stared at her for a minute. She was so nice, but to have bad karma… she did say she was like him before… she was trying to change… could he change? “So… why did you use this crystal then? If it allows you to do magic, why are you giving it to me?”

“Because,” she smiled gently at him. “If I can’t physically hug you… I thought that maybe I could… try and calm you down another way. Like a… soul hug, I guess? I’ve tampered with it a little, you don’t even need me to be around, but… if you’re feeling any particular way, and need… I don’t know, something to help you cool off your temper, it can do that. It’s not like ice or anything, but it’ll be a calming feeling if you let it.”

Error stared at her for a moment longer, before looking down at the heart-shaped crystal in his hand. Gently, his finger ran over it, and he swore he felt it radiating warmth for a second!

“I-I know it’s a little weird… you don’t really seem like the jewelry type, but I… well, if you don’t like it…”

“Jewel,” she heard as she turned, watching Error put the necklace on. His hand then fell beside him, and very carefully, he put his pinkie over hers. “Just shut up.”

She watched him for a moment as he sat there with his eyes closed. He seemed calm, he wasn’t any more pixelated than normal. Internally, he was screaming.

“Though,” he said after a minute, “We’re going to have to talk about the fact there’s a random bed in the middle of my anti-void… and how I wound up asleep in it!”

“Heh… your memory is really bad,” Jewel chuckled, leaning back as she held the tiny Error against her stomach, just enjoying the moment.


	8. Chapter 8 - Toxicity

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you're confused, good. XD It was part of the plan. Things were supposed to go too fast to keep track of. Apologies and enjoy the double upload.

# Chapter 8 – Toxicity

A pixelated portal opened up in a snowy field. Trees had been long cut down which caused the wind to whip through harshly.

“Why in the ever-loving hell did you bring me here, again?” Jewel asked as she followed Error. “You do realize I’m not anywhere near dressed for the cold, right?”

“So steal a coat,” Error stated plainly.

“Dude, the only creatures in the multiverse that wear coats are other Sanses. And newsflash, you’re all freaking short! Your coats won’t fit me. And I really don’t want to steal UnderSwap Papyrus’ stuff. I’m sure Blueberry washes them, but just… ew, no.”

Error laughed out. He couldn’t argue that point. “What about that human AU you went to before? Don’t they have stores you can steal from?”

Jewel just stared at him for a minute. She couldn’t believe she didn’t think of that. “F-fuck you,” she shivered, “Let’s just get this over with. The fuck are we doing here anyway?”

“You’re the one who said you wanted—“

She stared at him, confused. “You brought me to Snowdin Forest… where there are no fucking trees… for that.”

Error sweated. “Well, it’s a genocide run, figured it’d be a good spot for you to just… ya know. Go to Sans’ house.”

Jewel then stopped in her tracks, causing Error to turn and look back. “You… what? Which AU is this?”

“It’s… uh, not,” Error admitted. “It’s the-“

“The actual main… and you brought me in during a genocide timeline? To break into Sans’ house?” She turned back to the forest where the trees were. “That’s not where Papyrus fought the kid… is it? He doesn’t fight the kid there… he fights them by the river, doesn’t he?”

“Who knows,” Error said plainly, not really caring.

“Dude, this is wrong on so many levels.” She then turned to him. “Are you even really on speaking terms with Classic?”

“I dunno, are we?” they heard and turned, seeing Classic Sans, wearing Papyrus’ scarf, with a Gaster Blaster pointed directly at them.

Error glared and started getting ready with his strings.

“Error, no! Knock it off, this is your fault in the first place,” Jewel scolded, making Error look back at her.

“What, you expect me to not fight?!”

“He’s not going to fire unless you make a move, dumbass. Besides, he has more around us.”

Error blinked and looked around, though his vision was blurred.

“Clever,” Sans commented. “So, what’s your deal? I’ve got _snow_ issue with you, but you come here with Error, I can only assume you have bad intentions.”

“Oi. Not to give you the _cold shoulder_ or anything, but I’m half frozen here, can we not do this?”

“What are you, anyway? Some version of Frisk?” Sans asked. “Never knew Error to hang around anyone, let alone someone from an AU.”

“I’m not from an AU. Like Error I exist outside of all of this. Listen, I’m fucking freezing, let’s just do this.” She pulled up a panel of code in front of her, and Sans’ eyes widened.

“What the hell-?”

“You want Papyrus back, right?” she said offhandedly. “Let’s just go around Frisk, piss ‘em off a little,” she said, going through it all.

Sans took a step forward but Error was in front of her window with the code, blocking Sans from her. “Jewel, why the hell are you not doing that in the actual code?” he muttered at her.

“Because you pissed him off, and I want him to know I don’t mean anything. You do realize that I travel all the AUs. Of course, I’m going to know all about the OG timeline, and what happens during it. It’s fine, Error, let him look. UnderSwap Papyrus didn’t remember, once I reset he won’t remember the code part anyway.”

“Won’t… UnderSwap, you’ve been there?” he asked, his blaster not ready to fire any longer, just standing by.

“Yeah, not going to bore you with the details. Just had to fix it, reset it, ya know? Too much damage.”

Sans slowly started to move closer. Error didn’t like it, but Jewel told him it was fine, and for him to just relax. “This was your idea anyway, Error.”

“What was his idea?” Sans glared a little at him.

“I was in the mood to cook, but of course, no kitchen in the anti-void.”

Sans almost deadpanned. “That’s what this is about?”

“Yeah. I mean, you don’t really need to eat in the anti-void for some reason, time doesn’t pass so other things don’t really… ya know, happen. It’s weird but convenient. But I just… well, sometimes you get an urge for something different.”

Sans just stared at her but looked at the code. He knew a lot about it now since Ink and Error had shown up in his life, he learned about the AUs, another secret on his soul, but… “Can you stop the Genocide timelines?”

Jewel then stopped. She had frozen at his question. She turned to look at him, concern and sadness in her expression. “I… no, I can’t. I can reset them, but I can’t control the people in the worlds. I can override Frisk’s or Chara’s determination, but that’s about it. It’s even more difficult in the main-line here, there’s… Anything I do here can really mess with the AUs, everything else that exists. Even if I could mess with an individual code like that, if I did, your timeline wouldn’t be… this anymore. You’d be an AU, and,” she glanced to Error.

“You wouldn’t exist for long,” he said with a smirk.

Sans growled, but Jewel put a hand in front of him, causing him to look at her. “No, he’s right. Without a creator to sustain you, as an AU, you would perish. As the original timeline, your world is… well, static, safe. An AU needs to be nurtured, either by the original creator of it, or others who decide to take it on.”

“Creators?” Sans questioned.

“Ugh, don’t go into it. It’s annoying and doesn’t really matter,” Error rolled his eyes.

Sans looked confused and Jewel sweated a little. “I… don’t quite agree, but Error does have a point. It’s overly complicated and… well…”

Sans decided not to press, continuing to examine the code with her. “So, what exactly are you doing?”

“Basically, isolating the timeline. Once I find it, I can erase this one, parts of it, or whatever. Everything I do in the code here affects everyone in the world. So my explaining this to you won’t even matter, you’ll forget everything I’ve said.”

Sans listened, thinking, then he looked confused. “Why are you doing this?”

“Well, you want Papyrus back, and I rather not be hit with a laser again. I rather not compare how strong every Sans is.”

Sans stared at her. “You’ve been hit with-“

“Yes, yes, I’ve been shot, stabbed, strung up, take your pick.”

Sans looked at her, then back at Error who wasn’t looking at them, purposefully, and then back at her. “Why the hell are you with him, again?”

Jewel let out a soft chuckle. “He’s my friend.”

Error was a little embarrassed for her to say such a thing aloud, and it wasn’t missed by Sans, as he looked back at Error in disbelief, to see him fuming slightly, trying to hide his embarrassment. Sans slowly looked back at Jewel, concerned. He got in, closer, whispering. “Are you okay?”

She looked at him a bit weirded out, though, realistically… it kind of made sense. Error could be abusive to some… she just happened to be that person who could take his abuse and it not matter. “I-“ she was cut off by the snow suddenly rising as if it was made of liquid.

“What the hell?” Sans spoke up.

Error turned, knowing that liquid form. He growled, strings ready and grabbing the liquid form, which caused it to quickly turn into Ink, who was suddenly bound.

“Error!” he called out, struggling against the strings. “Of course you’d be here! What are you doing to the timeline this time?”

“Ink?” Sans was confused. “What the hell are you doing here?”

“Sans?” he blinked, then his eyes went to Jewel. “Why do you look so familiar?”

“You’re a fucking scatterbrain,” Error roared as he pulled at his strings, “You fucking ink stain!”

“You know Ink too?” Sans asked quickly.

“Knock it off, Error!” Ink protested, literally putting his feet down to physically fight Error. He then looked over at Jewel, still physically fighting Error. “Oh, I know who you are! You’re that creator!”

Sans quickly turned to her, “You’re a creator?”

“She is not!” Error roared, pulling more, a blaster popping up.

Jewel had listened to all of this, yammering so quickly, going on. Her anxiety was already on edge from Error pulling her into a genocide run of all things.

“SHUT UP!!”

A wave of energy radiated outward from Jewel, knocking everyone back several feet, but luckily, not damaging them. Sans, being the closest, really felt that, and having the lowest HP, it could have been his end. All eyes came upon Jewel as she stood there, holding her head, eyes closed.

In an instant, Error was next to Jewel, Sans and Ink watching in disbelief as he got within an arm’s distance, his own hands out, but not touching her.

“Jewel?”

“S-sorry…” she said softly, slowly moving back.

Ink and Sans both slowly stood up, watching the scene.

“What the hell was that?” Sans asked, looking at her. “That felt like…”

“Magic, yeah,” Jewel said softly. “Sorry… when my emotions get high, I can… kind of lose control.”

Sans stared, but Ink’s eyes sparkled. “Wow, a human who can use magic!” He then tilted his head. “But wait… you can literally make anything happen, why would you have magic too?”

“I can’t just… make things happen, Ink. I’m limited in what I can do, just like you and Error.”

“And what is it that you can do?” Sans then asked. “You’re messing with code, have magic that, honestly, probably should have killed me…”

“Oh, no,” Jewel sweated a little. “It wouldn’t hurt you. That magic is, well, defensive. It can’t really do any damage.”

“If she wanted to do damage, you’d know it. She’s not exactly known for mercy in the AUs,” Error said with a slightly sadistic smirk.

Sans then stared at her. “Wait, you help him destroy AUs?” He was instantly on the defensive.

Jewel held her head. “I’m so not in the mood for this again…”

Error growled and Ink stepped in. “She’s not a bad person, Sans,” he tried. “She took me to an AU to help it. She saved UnderSwap from Error. That’s actually how we all met.”

“You don’t know anything about her, you fucking squid! Don’t act like you do!” Error roared.

“Error, please, shut up,” Jewel muttered, causing Error to turn back to her. His eyes widened as he saw blood pouring from her nose, staining the snow.

“Jewel, you’re bleeding!”

Ink and Sans both turned, Sans paling a little. That was a lot of blood for a nose bleed…

Jewel continued to hold her head, leaning over a little. Error was actually getting closer to her, not liking how silent she was. She was bleeding, she wasn’t steaming, and that was a lot of blood, it wouldn’t stop.

“We should get her inside somewhere, sit her down,” Ink suggested.

Sans didn’t like this idea, he didn’t know if he could trust her… but he had never seen Error actually… care about someone. He decided to offer his home.

Jewel stood there, holding her head. All she heard was her heart pounding in her ears, everything else was muffled. She didn’t hear Error call out, she didn’t hear Ink’s suggestion… or even Sans offering to take them back to his place so he could figure it all out. What she felt…

“Look out!” Jewel suddenly shouted, leaping forward and pushing Error, causing him to glitch a little as a flash appeared where they had been standing, snow erupting and flying over the group. Jewel slid with Error on the snow. Her nose was still bleeding, but she glanced at Error. “Sorry,” she said, catching his eye before standing in front of him.

“The hell was that?” Ink questioned loudly, trying to see through the snow.

Sans paled a little as he saw a glimpse through the snow. “It’s Frisk!”

Sans instantly summoned his bones, but deep down, he knew he couldn’t do much damage to her. This was early in the run, she didn’t build up enough LV for his karma to do much to her.

“Sans, that doesn’t look like Frisk…” Ink spoke up.

Chara laughed, her shirt actually green. She wasn’t the possessed version of Frisk… this was actually her.

“What the…”

“Hey,” Jewel called out, Chara turning to look at her. Her nose still dripped into the snow, but she stood firm, not doubled over like before. “You picked a bad time. You’re not the one I got a bone to pick with, but I’ll oblige.”

“Heh, you’re not a skeleton, that stupid joke doesn’t make sense!”

“Really? That’s what you’re going with? I don’t have time to deal with this,” she muttered, holding her head again. “Error, you want this one?”

Error held that evil grin he was known for. However, this was one enemy no one felt for as he grabbed her soul. It didn’t take him much effort. Chara did slice at his strings, but that just left her open for him. She had gotten a little close to Sans, who had thrown his bones when she came at him, but Error caught her before she could, and Ink had stood in front of him to protect him. And in a second, Error ripped her soul from her body, causing Chara to collapse.

Sans let out a shaky breath. He forgot how quickly Error could kill people… “Well, that was easier than expected… thanks, I guess.”

“Heh, this was dull. Thought it’d be more of a challenge since she caught me off guard at first,” Error boasted.

While Sans gave him a bit of a ‘wtf’ look, Ink looked around. “Where’s Jewel?”

Instantly, the three Sanses looked around. She was indeed not in view. Sans looked down at where she had been standing before. The blood was a dead giveaway, but her footprints were so much bigger than theirs too.

“There’s no blood trail,” Sans spoke up.

“Maybe her nose finally stopped bleeding,” Ink suggested.

“But no footprints?” Sans countered.

“Damn it, she teleported!” Error growled.

“She can teleport??” Ink and Sans both questioned, incredulous.

“Yeah,” Error rubbed his skull. “It’s how she goes between AUs on her own.”

“This is bad, she can be anywhere!” Ink exclaimed.

“Wait, she said she had a bone to pick with someone else,” Sans recalled. “There’s someone else here!”

“Spread out!” Ink shouted.

Error really didn’t like this idea, he had to be the one to find Jewel. But he wasn’t going to argue the extra set of eyes… especially since his were so bad. He didn’t like to do it, but he pulled out his glasses and put them on, allowing him to see further away. He was going to need it to find her.

Jewel had indeed teleported away. Her nose didn’t stop bleeding, but her gut was telling her something was seriously wrong. She started walking and it didn’t take her long to spot what the source of her anxiety was. Standing in the shadows was a black, slimy figure that sort of resembled a Sans, but had four black equally slimy tentacles coming from his back. It almost seemed like he was either made of liquid or melting. Their eyes locked, and instantly, Jewel felt the wave of negativity coming off of him. It was almost… mesmerizing, just staring at him… but that’s when she realized her nosebleed got worse.

“Interesting,” the black blobby skeleton finally spoke, a smirk on his lips.

This had to stop, now! Jewel growled and rushed in, grabbing the skeleton by his neck and pinning him to a tree. He didn’t fight it, after all, no one touched him for good reason. However, he felt his neck being squeezed tighter, and he heard the hissing… but as he looked down to her hand and arm, enveloped in his black goo, he noticed there was a darker, black steam coming off of her. A blackness that was almost darker than his own came out from under the slime, flickering. He glanced up and her eyes were red, piercing.

“Very interesting,” he grinned. His tentacles tried to grab at her, but it seemed like they were in a stalemate. He could feel her burning under his ooze, but he was being actively strangled… she might actually just be able to power through it.

“Jewel!”

It rang through her like an alarm waking her from a dream. Her eyes turned back to normal and she got thrown back.

It had been Ink who found her, and he ran up before his eyes widened. “Nightmare?” What in the multiverse was he doing there?? He pulled out his brush, standing in front of Jewel protectively.

“Well, this has certainly been fun. Send my brother my regards, Ink.”

A wave of darkness was sent out at him. Ink couldn’t run, he had to protect Jewel! But he quickly felt himself being pulled down and Jewel wrapped herself around him as the darkness slammed into her back. Of course, he fought her, but the darkness grazed his arm and he felt the sting. That 1HP thing was really working against him.

Ink panicked a little as Jewel started to fall on him as the darkness passed. He grabbed her, able to keep her up, but he immediately pulled his hand back as he noticed her back was steaming nothing but blackness.

“Oh, my stars! Jewel!” Ink exclaimed, panic starting to sink in. He put her down, trying not to lay her on her back. Shakily, the damage was inspected. Her neck, upper arms and torso looked like it had been burned with acid, her arm especially did as it was near skeletal and black, hissing badly. And her back…

“Why did you jump in front of me?” he asked her. He could have done something, he could have… died… “Sans!! Error!!” he shouted at the top of his non-existent lungs.

The two skeletons made it to the scene, though Sans almost threw up right there. Ink wasn’t far behind him. Error… started to shake. His glasses gave him a perfect picture of what he was looking at from afar… he had to hide behind a tree and take his glasses off to process what he had just seen.

“Is she..?” Sans hesitantly asked.

“No, bonehead, I’m not dead,” she muttered. “My clothes are barely holding together, and you don’t exactly have the cleanest reputation ya know,” she joked.

Sans let an embarrassed chuckle escape him before he went over to try and help Ink get her to sit up, but she waved them off. “The one time I’m grateful for snow, let me lay here for a minute. My head is killing me…”

Error heard her joking around, but he knew better than anyone she was just trying to get them not to worry… which made him worry more. He had put his glasses away, to try and keep him from seeing it if he got too close. But he couldn’t contain himself.

“What the fuck happened?!” he shouted at them as he came out from behind the tree, keeping some distance.

“It was Nightmare!” Ink explained quickly, and even Error paled a little at that.

“The fuck was he doing here of all places?”

“Who is Nightmare?” Sans asked, only to blink when Jewel raised her hand, thumb pointing at him.

“I’m with Classic. The fuck was that guy’s deal?”

“He’s bad news,” Ink tried to explain, but…

“That’s putting it lightly. He’s someone even I take seriously.” Error then realized what had happened. “And you fucking touched him?! Are you insane?!”

“The hell was I to know?” Jewel muttered. “Never even heard of him before now.” She slowly sat up, Sans carefully guiding her from one side and Ink from the other. “I just know he was making my head explode.”

“Your head?” Ink questioned, confused.

“Yeah, I… I can’t explain it, but it was like… have you ever heard that sound a microphone makes when it’s too close to its speaker? It was like that, but in my head and the pressure that it created caused a hemorrhage… hence the nosebleed.”

Error listened, then remembered. “Your magic…” he said, causing all eyes to turn on him. “You said it was… what was it?”

“Empathy,” Jewel reminded. “Wait, are you…”

“Nightmare is a living embodiment of all negative feelings,” Error told her.

“Oh shit,” Jewel realized.

“Share with the class?” Sans pressed.

“Oh, uh… well… it’s like that feedback loop I just mentioned. See, as an empath, I’m able to feel and project emotion in a way most can’t. I’m kind of like a sponge for it, actually. If I focus, I can turn off the receptors, but, just naturally, I’m more in tune with how people are feeling. But with someone like Nightmare… oh shit,” she muttered, holding her head. “He was emitting such a strong negative aura, which I picked up on, soaked it up, and probably projected it back at him without realizing…”

“So… you were feeding him, and he was feeding you?” Ink asked.

“Yeah… and each time it got amplified… no wonder I…” she muttered softly, trailing off.

“Well, fuck. Now he knows you exist,” Error grumbled.

“Agreed, this is bad,” Ink continued. “If you can magnify what he has, he’s going to come after you. It’s like you’d be a buffet for him, he’d be unstoppable in theory.”

Jewel held her head. “It’s fine,” she muttered, finally standing up, a little unsteady but she handled it. “I’ve dealt with crap like this before, I can do it again. ‘Tis my lot in life, I suppose. Humans and magic always lead to trouble.” But she opened up the window to the code again. “Though I’m tired, I need to get this done so I can go take a nap.”

“Heh, I think we all need one after this,” Sans agreed.

“Well, that’s how you normally start off, right? Napping?” Jewel pointed out, then she looked to Error. “Why don’t you head on back? I know you don’t like it when I do this.”

Error looked at her confused for a moment, before realizing the box was going to be coming back. “Can you even get back in your condition?”

“Teleporting is the easier of my abilities, I’ll be fine.”

“I can always take her-“ Ink started, but was quickly cut off by Error.

“No!”

“It’s fine, Error, I got this,” she smiled at him. He grumbled, but opened a portal and left.

Sans and Ink just stared where he had gone. “It’s so weird to see him like that,” Ink commented.

“Creepy is more like it,” Sans corrected, before turning to Jewel. “You’re sure you’re okay being near him like that?”

Jewel chuckled a little. “Sans, I just touched literal black acid and I’m standing here and talking to you. I can handle Error.”

“Not what I meant, and that just makes me worry more.” He put his hand on her right, making her turn and look at him. “You’re acting like this is nothing, that if he hurts you, it’s nothing.”

“Because it isn’t, not really,” she admitted. “I can take a lot of damage, I can survive things most can’t. Let alone what a couple of 1Hp skeletons can.” It wasn’t malicious, she smiled, but it was a fact. “This,” she looked down at her arm, “Is kind of serious, but I’ll heal up, in time, and no permanent damage will be done.”

“How can you be so sure?” Sans asked her. Then his eye sockets widened. “How many times have you gone through things like this??”

Jewel just continued to smile, sadly this time. “My whole life has been… one big fight for survival. I remember a time when it scared me… now… I just don’t care. Pain doesn’t bother me… yeah, it still hurts, but not at a level others can feel. I’m… pretty numb,” she admitted softly. But she found the code and isolated it. She was about to hit it when Sans grabbed her hand.

“Sans, I need to-“

“I know. But is there any way I can remember this?” he asked. “That freak… Nightmare or whatever… he came to my world, messed around… the fact Chara was here, physically…”

“Yeah, sounds like something he’d pull,” Ink agreed.

Jewel looked at him before sighing, thinking. “Well, for you to remember, we’d have to pull you out of the normal cycle… which can be done, with a bit of difficulty, without destroying the timeline. So it’ll just be this one time… but it requires…” she glanced at Ink. “I’d need your help, Ink.”

“Me? I can’t do anything with the code.”

“I know but… well, I’m the only one who truly isn’t affected by it. You are, to a point. You’re subject to this reset in the fact it takes you home, but you remember. You and Error are anomalies with this, and while your presence isn’t enough… well, it’s a safety precaution too.”

“What do you mean?” Sans asked.

“I don’t have a “place” in the multiverse for myself. Not a physical one. I spend a lot of time in the anti-void with Error lately, but it… that’s his spot. As far as the code is concerned, I don’t… exist?” she tried to explain. “When I do a reset like this, I just… appear in the code, just outside of the AU I was in, sometimes elsewhere. And there’s only a few beings who can survive out there, and it’s not always… a good thing to survive it.”

“You’re talking about Error, aren’t you?” Sans sighed.

“So how am I a safety net?” Ink rose a brow.

“Well, last time we did a reset, Error had me tangled in his strings. I was tethered to him, and because of that, his “home” state overrode my lack of one, so I went back to the anti-void with him.”

“Oh, I get it! So if I’m here, instead of going to the code, we’d go to the Doodlesphere!”

“Exactly. We’d be out of the timeline, but it wouldn’t be anything to bring you back, Sans, and then, tada. Well, hopefully. I normally don’t go around the code this much.”

“Let’s do it!” Sans steeled himself. “I need to remember this… all of it.”

Ink hopped up and looked at Jewel curiously. “So, what do… I, uh… have to do?”

“Well, Error had my soul, but I don’t think it matters considering… well, never mind, pretty sure physical contact is all that’s required. Just, uh, careful where you grab, yeah?” she sweated. “Sans, you should be in the middle.”

Sans went and put his hand on her right arm, and Ink put a hand on his shoulder, giving a thumbs up. Jewel took a breath and with that, hit the reset button. The world around them turned white, then began to fade as boxes came around them, and the two skeletons would blackout.

Ink slowly awoke in to see the paint falling from the sky in his Doodlesphere. So it worked? He got up and looked over, seeing Sans still unconscious. It was his first time, probably took more out of him. But he looked around and didn’t see Jewel.

“Did she leave already?” Ink thought to himself as he got up and looked around a little. Though it didn’t take him long to find her. She was just around a corner, staring up at the vast worlds that dropped color into his life.

Ink watched her for a moment, before smiling. “Pretty awesome, right?” he spoke with a grin.

Jewel jumped just slightly and looked back, but gave him a small smile. “Yeah,” she said softly. What was she doing?

“You’re an artist, right? I think that was brought up last time we talked?” he tried to remember.

She chuckled softly. “Yes. You went rummaging through my bag without asking and pulled out my sketchbook.”

Ink blink and blushed a little. “Heh, sorry about that…” he muttered softly.

“Eh, not the worst invasion of privacy I’ve ever had,” Jewel chuckled softly.

Ink stared at her for a bit, not sure if he liked that comment, but decided not to dwell on it. “So… can I see it this time?” He then asked. Then he blinked. “Oh, I don’t even see your bag…”

Jewel rubbed the back of her neck. “No, I don’t have it anymore… Error… kind of destroyed it in a fit of rage.”

“What?” Ink blinked.

“Yeah… after we last parted, he started going off. He was adamant that I was on your side, blamed the fact I draw, like because we have the same hobby, we’re automatically…” She shook her head a little. “So he used a blaster and blew up my bag. What’s really sad was the only thing in that sketchbook was sketches of him.”

Ink had an uneasy look on his face. “You… uh… drew Error?”

“Well, it was a new book,” she admitted, “And he was the only interesting thing around, so he kind of became my focal point. But I haven’t gotten a new book or supplies since. Things are getting better now, but, I still don’t want him to think I’m picking sides.”

“See, that right there is a toxic relationship,” they heard, turning to see Sans walking over.

“It was a while ago,” Jewel defended. “He’s gotten better at it.”

“And now you’re making excuses. You really shouldn’t be hanging around that guy!” Sans protested.

“Error’s not… that bad,” Ink defended, weakly. “He’s just lonely.”

“It doesn’t give him the right to just-“

“Enough, please,” Jewel said, looking at them both. “I know what it looks like, and I see the red flags. Because I was just like him once. But someone took a chance on me… so I need to give him that same chance.”

“What… do you mean? Like him… how?” Sans asked carefully.

“That… can be a story for another time. I’m exhausted, and I’m in pain.” They both looked down at her arm, and it was trembling. How long was she pretending it hadn’t bothered her? “Ink, can you take Sans home, please? I need to go… I’ll come check on you later, Sans, make sure everything’s okay in the code. Take note of anything out of the ordinary, okay? Even the tiniest things.”

“’kay,” he said softly, and Ink went over, a paint portal opening up in the river near Snowdin.

“Ready to go?”

Sans nodded but turned to Jewel. “You’re sure you’re going to be okay?”

“Well, I know where you all live now,” she turned with a half-smile. “I just have to be somewhere once and I can go there again.”

“Oh, so you can come back to the Doodlesphere?” Ink asked excitedly. “I’ll get you a new sketchbook and other supplies! We can draw! Hey, maybe you can use your creator powers and create things here like I can!”

“Ink…” Sans sweated a little. “Save it for next time, ya? She’s tired.”

“Oh, right,” he sweated a little but smiled at her. “But come back and visit me too, huh?”

“If you’re here,” she teased. “You don’t seem like the type to come back often, you like to explore.”

Ink sweated. “Fair… but I’ll come back and check for you!”

“Well… we’ll see,” she smiled and waved, before teleporting out.

Ink and Sans stared at where she had been.

“She’s gonna get hurt, being close to Error like that.”

“But he can protect her from Nightmare pretty well,” Ink countered. “They rather not fight each other.”

Sans held his head. This was too much to process right now. “We’ll see…” he said and turned into the portal, Ink following.

Meanwhile in the anti-void, Error was waiting, twitching, trying not to go down the road he did last time. When he saw her appear, he was instantly up. He would have probably yelled, but he saw that look of pure exhaustion on her face.

“Jewel?” he asked, getting a little closer to see.

“Not now, Error,” she muttered, going for the bed she had yet to get rid of. “I need… to sleep…”

She almost collapsed on the bed. Her clothes were badly damaged, she was still burnt, parts of her were black… and passed out almost immediately. Error had never known her to just… fall asleep. She tossed and turned several times beforehand. He knew, because it bothered him, he liked the absolute quiet. He stayed near the bed. It was odd, how she just fell into this as she did… but that was when he noticed it. A faint glow under her shirt… it was near white, almost like a… monster’s soul. What? He looked up at her face and noticed that the slight burns on her neck were starting to fade… like he would blink and some of it had turned less red…

“She retreated into her soul…” he realized. But that meant she… He started to shake a little, his glitching intensifying. “Damn it Jewel… you can’t… lower your guard around me like this! I’m not..!” He looked at her, just so… He flashed to his dream, it still haunted him, seeing her face as he strangled her. When he snapped out of it, he realized his hand was close to her neck. He quickly pulled it back, shaking, glitching out. He fell to the floor and sat by the bed, holding his head in his hands.


	9. Chapter 9 - Falling into a Familiar Trap

# Chapter 9 – Falling into a Familiar Trap

Error couldn’t tell how long she had been out. Time didn’t exactly flow in the anti-void, he just knew it felt like forever. He was watching her, trying not to fall asleep. Every time he did, he saw those images, or new ones would take their place. What was wrong with him? This was his friend, right?

_You don’t deserve to have friends._

Error flinched as his own voice echoed in his head.

_Just a dirty glitch. Abomination. You destroy everything you touch!_

Tears streamed down his face as he fought himself, trying not to listen, trying not to imagine all the ways he could hurt Jewel right now. She was vulnerable and she trusted him! Such an idiot! Why would she trust him, a known murder, with her like this?! A look on his ceiling was all it took to see the various human souls he had taken from AUs, all the Frisks and Charas and… whatever else was there! Whoever had the power to reset! And she… could override them. And he let her live!

“Damn it, what’s wrong with me!!” he screamed in his head, bony fingers clawing at his skull.

It was then he felt something warm against his chest. It distracted him enough for him to stop the thoughts for a moment and he looked down. The necklace Jewel had given him was glowing faintly. It felt like… he wasn’t sure, but he didn’t want to let it go. It was like it touched his soul directly in a way he had never experienced. Jewel said it would help him, but this…

“F-fuck, Jewel… what are you doing to me?” he muttered softly, raising a hand to wipe the tears from his face.

Feeling his hand touch his face, he instantly flashed back to their time in Outertale, where he was glitching… and she used his own hand to try and comfort him as they were attached with his strings. He realized this feeling was similar… but more powerful to that emotion he felt before. That’s when he realized…

“Damn it… I trust her…” he closed his eyes, remembering when she took care of him when he was crashing, how she led him to safety, did everything she could to not freak him out… and after…

He gripped the crystal dangling from his neck, feeling the warmth. Part of him wanted to rip it off and chuck it out of the anti-void, but… he couldn’t bear to lose it at this point. Even if this was the first time it had activated… it was also the first present he had ever received. From his only friend…

Error tried to distance himself from her unconscious form, but he always found himself checking on her, hoping she would wake up. He couldn’t even see anything left on her body from where she made contact with Nightmare… Was there more damage he couldn’t see? The nosebleeds… weren’t that bad, were they?

Slowly, her eyes opened and Error fell onto his backside in surprise. He had been way too close for her to wake up like that!!

“Error? What..?” she questioned.

“J-just making sure you were breathing,” he muttered, hiding his face as it was bright blue at this point.

She blinked, looking down at him and she let out a soft chuckle. She held out her hand over the side of the bed for him, should he feel the need. “I’m fine, promise.”

Error looked to her hand, then glared at it as he got up, hiding his face from her. “Well,” he tried to sound as nonchalant as he could, “Now that you’re awake, I’ve got work to do.”

Jewel looked up at him, not even having sat up yet. “Error?”

“I’ve been slacking. There are AUs to destroy.”

“O-oh, okay,” she said, getting up. “Let me just-“

“No.”

She jolted a little and looked up at his back.

“You said you didn’t like it. I’ll do it on my own.”

“Error…”

“It’s fine,” he said, his voice even. He even turned back to look at her. He didn’t seem upset. “I’ve got a few I want to hit, been watching them from here while you were out.”

“Which ones?”

“Doesn’t matter.”

“Yeah it… kind of does, Error. You kind of go for ones that aren’t going to be easy to destroy.”

“That’s where all the fun is.” He saw her about to protest and he put his hand up. “Just stop. I’ve got a job to do. And you need to get some new clothes. Don’t wait up for me. In fact, why don’t you go bug Classic? Maybe if you talk to him your way, you’ll get to use his kitchen.”

His words had bite, and Jewel wasn’t sure why. “Error, what’s gotten into you?”

“Nothing,” he opened up a portal and without giving her a chance to respond, he was gone.

Jewel sat there, confused, as Error just up and left her. She had no idea why he was acting out like that… then again, she remembered a time when she did the same, acting out to hide emotional conflict… she hated to be pursued when it happened, so she decided to give Error a little space. After all, he did bring up a good point. Her clothes were in tatters… her bandage on her arm was gone. Granted, the wound was looking better and it was almost healed… She probably wouldn’t need bandages. And she did need to check on Classic Sans and the timeline…

Sans had all but been asleep at his station. He kept getting interrupted by Ink, however, who kept popping up to see if Sans had been visited by Jewel yet. Every time, he said no, it hadn’t been that long. Finally, after his nap had been disturbed for the sixth time, he had enough.

“Ink, it’s been two days, I doubt she’s going to show up anytime soon,” he protested, only to be startled by a voice behind him.

“Howdy!”

Sans jumped ten feet and his eye was glowing with magic, blaster at the ready, but he almost fell into his desk as he noticed who it was.

“Damn it, Jewel!” Sans all but melted into his desk.

“Jewel!” Ink chimed up, going over to her. “You’re finally better!”

Sans slowly stood up, raising a brow. “Yeah… how the hell..?” he questioned. He noticed the wardrobe change, which included a coat this time. “You’re not pushing yourself, are you?”

“Nah,” she grinned. “I heal pretty fast. So, how’s things here? Nothing… crazy?”

“No, not really,” Sans said as he looked over at the path. “Kid came back, seems to be a peaceful run this time around. Already left Snowdin.”

“Well, that’s good. Don’t really want to explain another human to them right now,” she chuckled.

“So… where’s your shadow?” Sans asked.

Ink blinked. “Oh, you mean Error? Yeah, where is he?”

Jewel shrugged. “I dunno. He wouldn’t tell me. Just said he was off to go do his job.”

“And he left you behind?” Sans questioned.

“Well, I did mention how I wasn’t really… comfortable… killing innocent people anymore. Granted, the ones I took him to, it was more of a mercy killing but still… Especially when it’s the same people, over and over again? It was… weird, watching the other Sanses die, then to look at a different one enjoying it?”

“Don’t know how you see any of us in Error…” he muttered.

“He’s just a version of you that was… left behind,” she said softly. “The anti-void does things to you.”

Sans looked skeptical but Ink stepped in. “She’s right, Sans. It’s… if the colors of the AUs didn’t enter the Doodlesphere, I don’t know what would have happened.”

Sans sighed. “Fine, I won’t pretend that I understand, I clearly don’t. Though, why hasn’t it affected you then, Jewel?”

“Oh, I’m human, and-“

“And a creator.”

“I am not, Ink, we’ve been over this.”

“I’m still confused about that,” Sans admitted.

“It’s… complicated,” Jewel sighed. “I’m not really any different from Ink and Error in their respective… unique powers.”

“You need to sit down and explain this to me one of these days.”

“That’s about as privileged as information gets, Sans.”

“So, what, you’re only going to tell Error? Is he really that great of a friend?”

“I haven’t told Error…” Jewel spoke up.

Sans blinked and he looked over. “So, Ink knows…?”

“Ink’s inferred what he says, I’ve never confirmed anything. In fact, I’ve outright denied it, but he doesn’t listen.”

“That’s because you’re lying! A good friend knows when his friends are lying!”

Jewel stared at him a little bit. “Since when were we friends?”

Ink’s face instantly fell. He looked genuinely hurt. “But… I thought..?”

“That’s harsh, Jewel,” Sans watched her.

“No, seriously,” she looked at the two. “What have any of us done that’s a “friend” thing?”

“We were worried about you!” Ink protested.

“Kindness, not friendship,” she pointed out.

“So, what, the people that are nice to you aren’t your friends, but that asshole who _attacked_ you is??” Sans protested.

Jewel sighed a little. Great, this conversation again. “That was a long while ago! Like, when we first met, before we started to get to know each other!”

“And you’re making excuses for him! Again!”

“Why don’t you want to be friends with us, Jewel?” Ink asked quietly.

Jewel turned, looking at him, and sighed. “It’s not that I don’t…” she said softly. “I don’t… like throwing the word around so casually. I mean, I…” she paused, rubbing the back of her neck. “You saw how I lost control of my powers last time, I lashed out… Sans was right, I could have killed you all. The fact Nightmare was feeding on me and _that_ power came out… lucky break for everyone involved. If any of my offensive magic came out, well…” she looked down at the ground. “I don’t want to hurt anyone…”

Sans and Ink were silent as they listened to her explain, before looking at one another, then back at her.

“So… it’s okay for you to risk Error then?” Sans asked, pointing out a flaw in her logic.

“Of course not!” she argued. “But… what’s done is done with Error. I know it’s weird and doesn’t follow normal protocol… and all the red flags, but I care about him, damn it.”

There was a little bit of silence, before Ink spoke up. “And you care enough to help Sans. I came here looking for anomalies in the timeline, I didn’t even think about Nightmare messing with everything. But you came, and you were willing to reset right away. From what I heard, you kept Error from fighting Sans.”

“You did stop that fight,” Sans agreed. “You went straight in and told me you’d bring back Papyrus. You explained everything, knowing I would forget… yet on a whim you helped me remember what you did. You might not realize it, Jewel, but you act like a friend to us. Why won’t you let us be friends to you?”

“Because it’s dangerous to get close to me. People die. And then shit happens all over again…” she muttered a little. “I can’t protect everyone…”

“You don’t have to. We can handle ourselves pretty well,” Ink boasted.

“And it’s not like you can stop us. Like you said about Error, what’s done is done. We care about you now, whether you like it or not.”

Jewel listened to them and chuckled a little. “God, you guys sound like Red.”

“Red?” Sans blinked, looking to Ink, who shrugged.

“Sorry,” she smiled a little. “Other than Error, he’s the first Sans I’ve met on a more… personal level. He helped me through a tough time. I gave him my number but he hasn’t contacted me… can’t say I’m surprised with how his Papyrus acts.”

“Well, maybe you should go see him, too,” Ink smiled. “I mean, you’re wanting to make friends, right?”

“You don’t listen, do you?” she chuckled a little. “But I suppose you’re right… I’ve already broken my rule with Error, no sense in keeping it with others who actually want to get to know me, I suppose.”

“That’s the spirit!” Ink smiled at her, Sans letting out a soft chuckle. “So, what AU is he in?” Ink asked, getting his brush ready. “So long as there’s liquid, I can-“

“Ink, I can teleport to whatever AU or timeline I want.”

“Oh, right,” he sweated. Though he looked a little disappointed. He kind of wanted to go.

Jewel held a smile though, and extended her hand. “You just need to hold on, like before.”

Ink beamed and instantly went over, clamping an arm around hers, locking elbows with a bright grin. Jewel then looked over to Sans, smiling.

“Wanna ditch work and go see another world?”

“Heh, so long as I’m back by dinner,” Sans grinned and walked over. He lazily put a hand on her, and in an instant, they were off.

They arrived in a snowy forest, one that was very familiar to Sans’. He rose a brow and looked around.

“Why are we in the forest?” he asked. He knew where they were, they weren’t far from his sentry stand.

“Because I didn’t want to get him in trouble,” Jewel said and motioned for them to be quiet as she went and walked a little, the two on her heels. As they walked, a sort of familiar sound hit their ears.

“God fucking damn it, Sans! You worthless piece of shit!” Papyrus screamed, having already hit his brother, hard, cracking his skull in the process. To his credit though, Red just sat there and took it, though it was clear there was a bit of anger building up behind his eyes, his fanged teeth seething. “You were asleep at your station, again!”

“Sorry, boss,” he muttered through clenched teeth.

Ink didn’t like what he was seeing, and tried to intervene, but Jewel held him back, physically, by the scarf, making both Sans and Ink look up at her. Her eyes were narrowed and she was holding herself back as much as she was Ink at this point. Sans, for his part, didn’t like it, but… it was still a Papyrus… though he couldn’t imagine his brother…

Luckily, Papyrus didn’t stay on his rant too long and stormed off, going back on patrol. Red lowered his head, feeling the new wound on his head with a wince. Damn, that took more out of him than he thought it would… He might not have an option but to pass out. But he heard some crunching in the snow, and that definitely wasn’t Papyrus this time.

“Who’s there?!” he roared out, eye glowing red as he summoned a blaster. “I fucking swear I’ll-“

“Easy Red,” Jewel called as she came around the tree.

In an instant, he seemed less tense, and a smile even hinted at his lips. “Jewel! Damn it, ya gunna give me a heart attack.”

“You’re a skeleton,” she chuckled a little.

“Ya know wut I mean,” he gave her a bit of a grin, but it instantly went down when he heard other footsteps.

“Easy, they’re with me,” Jewel told him as Ink and Sans came into view.

“The hell are ya bringin’ other… me’s… into dis for?”

“Well, they wanted to meet my friend.”

“Friend?” Red blinked at her. “Dat’s a lil’ much, ain’t it? I mean,” he started to sweat. “Friends ain’t really a thing ‘round here.”

“Really?” she rose a brow, smirking a little at him. “I thought you didn’t do what you were told?”

He sweated, being caught in his own words, but he laughed lightly. “Guess ya got me there,” he said, before wincing, holding his head.

“What’s going on with your Papyrus anyway?” Sans asked finally.

“Eh, he’s always like that,” Red said, rubbing his head before wincing a little as he felt the crack again.

“C’mere,” Jewel said as she moved to examine it.

“It’s fine, doll,” he said with a bit of a smile. “It ain’t nuthin’ I haven’t had before.”

“That isn’t exactly comforting,” Sans sweated a little. Ink really didn’t know what to say, he was staying quiet.

“I didn’t ask ya-OW! Mother fucking-!” he winced as he felt a hand hover over his skull.

“Quit being a big baby,” she chuckled softly as her hand began to gently glow white.

Almost instantly, Red relaxed a little and leaned into her touch a little. “Damn, sweetheart… whatever ya doin’… it feels nice…”

Sans instantly recognized the aura around her hand. “You have healing magic?” he asked.

“What _don’t_ you have?” Ink exclaimed.

Jewel stuck her tongue out at Ink, but smiled a little. “You never asked what I could do. And you’re not exactly under-powered yourself there, Ink. Able to create anything you want.”

Ink sweated a little. “Heh, guess you have a point.”

Sans, however, watched a little closely as Red’s injury seemed to rapidly get smaller, and smaller… “That’s some potent magic. Mine’s not that strong.”

“Well, it’s not your specialty, is it?” Jewel countered.

“And it’s yours?” Sans questioned.

“Well… sort of. I have two specialties in defensive, and two in offensive magic, and I can’t use them at the same time. They’re… kind of like opposite classes.”

Sans rose a brow. “That… doesn’t make sense.”

“It dun have ta,” Red said as he felt the wound closing, finishing up. He pulled back once she was done. “S’long as it works.” But then, he realized, “Oh shit! Boss is gonna kill me when he realizes it’s healed up! He’s gonna know sumthin’s goin’ down!”

“Relax, Red,” she said, and he turned red.

“H-hey! Ya c-can’t call me that in public!”

Ink and Sans chuckled a little bit. “Well, Why not?” Jewel asked. “I mean, they’re Sanses too,” she grinned at him. “And that one,” she motioned to Classic, “Is the OG, so if anyone is gonna be called Sans, it would be him, huh?”

“Who says he’s da original?” Red protested.

“The code,” Ink and Jewel answered at the same time, chuckling a little.

“But I’m honestly surprised you know about the AUs,” Ink spoke up. “Most don’t. I really shouldn’t even be telling people, honestly. Messes with stuff,” he sweated.

“Eh, yer not da first ones I’ve come across. I met another me before, wanted ta work together, wasn’t interested,” Red explained.

“Who would that be?” Sans then asked, carefully.

“Dun remember his name. Just some creepy ass mother fucker, liked to hide in da shadows. Jes gave me a bad feelin’ so I told ‘im to get lost. He had a few others wit him though.”

The three looked at each other. “He didn’t happen to be all black, was he?” Ink then asked.

“Well, which one, two of ‘em were.”

“Wait, Nightmare and Error?”

“So ya know ‘em?” Red asked. “I dun know if the other one’s right, but Error, dat sounds familiar, and makes sense, given the way he glitched.”

“Definitely,” Ink confirmed. “Error’s worked with Nightmare before on rare occasions.”

“And the others there could probably be from some of the other murderous AUs…” Jewel added.

Sans looked at them, a little unnerved. “Wait, there are versions of me that are just…”

“Well, yeah,” Jewel told him. “You’ve already met a few,” then she motioned to Red. “One right there.”

“What?” Sans quickly turned to him.

“Hey, it’s a kill or be killed world. ‘tis the law ‘round here, courtesy of King Asgore himself.”

“Red’s the one monster who doesn’t quite follow that as much as he probably should, for his own sake,” Jewel pointed out. “It’s why his Papyrus is always on him.”

“If he’s not takin’ credit for what he makes me do,” he muttered. “I jes don’t give a damn no more.”

“Well… this is certainly depressing,” Ink said, obviously not that upset about the fact.

“Heh, ya have no idea what da word means,” Red countered, a little spitefully, but he turned to Jewel. “So, how’s da arm, sweetheart?” he asked, reaching for it.

Jewel didn’t stop him, which made Ink and Sans confused. “Wait, how long ago did you two meet?” Ink asked.

“Ah, how long’s it been?” Red asked, looking up at her.

“It’s been a while. Time doesn’t flow where I stay so it’s hard to tell.”

“Heh, I get that,” Red let out a half chuckle. “We’ve been havin’ resets left ‘n right, I can’t keep track.”

Sans stared at her. “Wait, you said he was the first one you got to know besides Error… So before this whole business with Nightmare at least, right?”

Red blinked and looked up. “Wait… the punk ya fought wit was Error?”

“Fought?” Ink and Sans both questioned.

“Ya, uh… didn’t tell ‘im what I said, didja sweetheart?” Red sweated.

Jewel chuckled. “No, Red. I didn’t tell him anything. Well, I mean, he could tell what did the damage, but I didn’t give him specifics, no.”

“What the hell are you two going on about?” Ink then asked, frustrated. He and Sans were being left out! But as he came around to actually look at what Red was looking at with her arm, he stopped, his already pale face grew paler. It was a small hole through her arm, and he could still see her bone. “W-what the hell..?”

Sans was confused and came around, stopping in his tracks, before he turned to Red. “You did this?” his eye started to glow.

“Whoa, whoa!” Jewel turned, standing between Sans and Red. “No, I did it to myself!” Sans and Ink both jerked a little at that, Ink holding a hand over his mouth. He felt like he was going to be sick. “Remember I told you he helped me through a tough time?”

Sans caught on, too quick for Jewel’s liking. “Because of Error? What did he do?!”

Red started to step backward. “Uh… sweetheart...Ya, uh… should prolly still bandage that up… I’ll go…”

“No, its fine, Red,” she told him. “I don’t exactly heal “normal”—“

“Jewel, you just got freaking burned like hell by Nightmare, on that very arm, and yet that’s gone, but this isn’t??”

“Sans, calm down.”

“You tried to kill yourself Jewel!”

“You didn’t even know I existed at that point.”

“Doesn’t change the fact! How many times have you tried?? How many times has Error pushed you into feeling like that?”

“Would you stop,” she said, putting a hand on his shoulders.

It was then Sans realized he was shaking. What the hell was wrong with him? Yes, Jewel helped him, he liked her… but this… maybe it was just because he couldn’t stand to see people suffer, his time in his own genocide runs, everything…

“First off, that kind of anxiety is _never_ going to help someone in this kind of situation,” she told him, causing him to look up at her. “If I ever came to you with this kind of issue, you’d just push me right back to it, okay?”

“But you-!” he protested, unable to find the words, looking down as he tried.

“Sans… look at me.” She lifted his chin to make him look up. “We can discuss this later. It’s not important-“

“Of course it’s important!”

“Right now. It’s not important right now,” she finished what he cut off. “You’re upsetting Ink,” she told him softly.

Sans turned to Ink, who was shaking, his face multicolored in his flush. He barely held it together as Jewel walked over to him, before throwing up a massive amount of black ink. Jewel barely jumped back in time, just kind of staring.

“Well… I suppose that explains why Error always calls you “squid”,” Jewel sweated a little before rubbing Ink’s back, calming him down.

Ink had no idea why that bothered him so much. The wound looked bad, he knew how humans healed… that wasn’t something normal and it still looked bad to him. But that feeling against his back, it was something he hadn’t really experienced before, and he looked up at Jewel.

“He still calls me that?”

“That or Ink Stain,” she sweated a little.

“Heh… maybe he does care a little after all.”

Jewel smiled a little, but Red decided to speak up.

“So, doll. Why is dat takin’ so long ta heal? I mean, I know yer a tough broad, but it sounds like you had another serious injury. Care ta explain?”

Jewel hesitated a minute before sighing, the look from Sans and Red getting to her. “Self-inflicted wounds follow a different set of rules,” she admitted. “Yeah, I can heal quickly from just about anything, but things I do to myself, well… they heal slower than normal, even for a normal human. It’s… well… it’s a karmic penalty. You both know how that works.”

“Karma?” Sans questioned. “What does that have to… do…” He then realized. “Wait, your magic… I thought you said it was emotion based? Why does karma come into play?”

“I’m an empath, my magic does follow that. But karma has literally everything to do with life, including magic. It’s… complicated, I really rather not go into the details. But, basically, my healing, well… it’s faster than normal, and then there’s another technique I can do to speed it up. It’s meant as a defensive thing. But attacking myself kind of… well, it’s…” She rubbed her head, trying to find the words. “Backward isn’t the right word, but I can’t really think of how to describe this. Basically, I’m being punished for a lack of judgement. I can heal myself, but not from myself, does that make sense?”

“On a base level, but… ya know if you tell us, we might be able to help ya with your magic,” Sans offered. “You said you had a hard time controlling it.”

“Yeah,” Ink chimed in. “And it doesn’t matter what kind, there are dozens of different Sanses and monsters that know almost any kind of magic in the AUs!”

“I appreciate the offer, guys… but this magic is kind of rare and I’ve done well on my own. I only lose control when I get extremely emotional, or I let it get out of hand… too much at once, ya know. And I don’t really rely on the magic so much… well, the healing, definitely, so I don’t have to rely on the others. I’m a hand-to-hand fighter. I don’t have to use it often when I can just break whatever you guys send at me.”

“Really?” Sans sounded skeptical.

“Dude, dun fuck wit her,” Red quickly warned. “She fuckin’ smashed my blaster in two seconds flat, I could barely summon da thing. Not ta mention she apparently can take a hit wit almost no damage from one.”

“Wait, you’ve been shot with a blaster?” Sans then turned his attention back to her.

“Yes, yes. Didn’t we go over this before when we met? Besides,” she then teleported behind him, making him jump a little. “I’m like you guys, remember? Can’t hit me if I don’t let you.”

Sans and Red chuckled a little, and Ink smiled. “So, what do you do around here for fun, Red?” Ink asked.

“Hey, I let Jewel call me “Red,” but I dun remember givin’ you permission,” he scolded.

“Oh come on,” Jewel smiled. “Not the worst name to be called, is it?”

He supposed not, but he wasn’t about to go admitting it. “Whatever. As fer yer question, nuttin’ really “fun” around here. I go to Chillby’s fer drinks, but it’s still a pretty hostile environment.”

“Chillby’s?” Sans snickered.

“Wut?” Red sneered at him.

“Oh god, the pun possibilities,” Jewel laughed.

“Don’t you go punnin’ me!” Red barked.

“Technically I’d be punning myself,” Sans grinned.

“Don’t you even dare!!”

Jewel chuckled a little. “Hey, Red,” she pulled his attention. “Papyrus is going to be gone for a while, yeah? Can I borrow your kitchen?”

Red rose a brow. “Why?”

“Kinda wanna cook something. I’ll leave you a special treat.”

“I’ll get in huge trouble if Boss finds ya in there. Or if he catches me slackin’ off again.”

“I can teleport, so can Sans. Ink can make portals to escape to other AUs. I don’t think staying hidden will be a problem. And, you don’t have to come with us, but it’d be more fun,” she smiled. “You know when Papyrus will come back, right? You can check in every so often. A little hooky won’t hurt, and I got your back if you get caught.”

“How the hell would ya have my back against da boss? Ya can’t really talk to the guy.”

“Well, he also can’t hurt what he can’t hit. I got this, Red, trust me,” she smiled.

Red grumbled a little, but smiled after a minute. “Fine. I’m sick of doin’ this job anyway.”

Jewel grinned and wrapped her arms around all three of the, hugging and teleporting them all to Sans’ and Papyrus’ house.


	10. Chapter 10 - Panic

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Commissioned work for this chapter! Check it out and go give thanks to the amazing Teirrart!  
> https://www.deviantart.com/teirrart/art/Multi-scene-Commission-832998648

# Chapter 10 - Panic

Error returned to the anti-void to find it empty. He looked around a little, not that it was hard to tell that Jewel wasn’t there. He noted her clothes on the floor, folded, but still…

“Guess she at least got new clothes,” he muttered, looking at the burnt ones as he picked it up. “Why did she even keep these?” he wondered. But he realized he felt weird, holding her shirt like that. He started to glitch a bit, and he wasn’t sure why. He dropped it and backed away, sitting on the bed, his hand on his head.

“It’s fine. I told her to go out,” he muttered softly to himself. “Time isn’t normal here… it felt longer to me, that’s all. She could have only just left...” He was trying to reason with himself why Jewel wasn’t there, why it was okay. And it wasn’t working.

“I want her to be safe… she’s safe with Classic, his world is fine… the kid can’t kill her if I can’t,” he muttered softly. He started glitching a little more. “I’m only going to hurt her again…” He closed his eyes, holding his head. “But… I suppose it wouldn’t hurt to check on her…” he muttered softly.

He opened up a window, which was like his portal only harder for those on the other side to see. He went looking through Classic’s world. She wasn’t at any point he thought of… not in Snowdin, not in the house, not at his station… he looked all over. Not in Grillby’s, not at his spots in Waterfall, not at his stand in Hotland, nowhere… panic was beginning to set in. But Sans wasn’t anywhere either. He saw Papyrus, he saw the kid. He saw Undyne, he saw Alphys… Did she take him to another AU? If she did, there was no way to track them!

“Damn it! There’s too many universes to check!” Error shook. “Why would Classic go to an AU?” He was lazy but ditching that far out after a genocide run… and he couldn’t know that Jewel reset worlds because he would have forgotten… right?

Error didn’t have a choice but to wait for her to come back… he did periodically check in on Classic’s world to see if she was there… she wasn’t. He tried to watch Undernovela to keep his mind off of it, but he couldn’t get comfortable. After all, he was in the chairs she made with crystal from her soul… but he didn’t want to sit on the floor… Everything he did just made him think of Jewel because he shared everything with her so early on.

“Fuck this, I need chocolate!” he suddenly shouted and opened up a portal into one of UnderFell’s many cabinets where that Sans stored his chocolate. That’s when he heard it.

“C’mon, that the best ya got, sweetheart?” Red taunted.

“Oh, you’re asking for it, Red!” Jewel replied.

“The fuck is she doing in UnderFell?” Error asked himself, his entire body on edge. He closed the portal, stolen chocolate in hand, and opened a window above where the cupboard was. He saw them. All of them. Jewel, Abomination 13, Classic, and that damn Squid!!

Red was running around, trying to get Jewel with something in his hand while Ink and Sans were cheering them on, refilling “ammo” of frosting on the sidelines. Jewel was laughing as she ran, dodging Red. Neither of them were using magic or powers. Just… playing around.

“Got ya!” Red declared as he leaped forward and grabbed Jewel, smearing frosting on her face. However, doing so left himself open and she got him with a small amount caught on her hand. He let her go and snorted, coughing. “Gah! Ya got it up my nose hole!” he desperately tried wiping it off.

It was too much for Ink and Sans, who just burst out laughing, falling back and rolling around on the floor. Jewel and Red looked at one another with a smirk before they grabbed some more frosting and lunged at the two.

“Ah, shit!” Ink bolted upward while Sans lazily rolled out of the way. Jewel went after Ink, Red after Sans, the four of them laughing heartily.

Error dropped his chocolate as he continued to watch, unable to move. His brow furrowed, teeth-gritting fiercely, but tears streaming down his face. His glitching was out of control, pixels were everywhere. He just barely managed to close the window before he started screaming. Bones and blasters summoned and just attacking in every direction. The chairs, the bed, everything was destroyed, even some of the souls he had contained were caught in the blast. He didn’t care. Error fell to the ground, clawing at his skull. The warmth against his chest from the necklace only made the pain worse.

Why? Why did this hurt?! He told her to go, he told her to hang out with Classic!! But with Ink and Thirteen there as well… to see them all getting along, happy…

Jewel had tackled Ink to the ground splattering frosting on his face and Red was still chasing Sans. Ink licked the frosting, his eyes turning into stars as he enjoyed the flavor, but he noticed quickly that Jewel had slid to the side, sitting on the ground next to him. The smile that had adorned her face just a moment ago was gone and she looked concerned.

“Jewel?” Ink asked as he sat up. The tone in his voice caused the other two to stop the shenanigans and look over. “Are you okay?”

“I just… got a bad feeling. I should—“ she stopped as another feeling overcame her, and they all heard the shouting of Papyrus outside.

“Oh fuck!” Red exclaimed, looking at the clock. “He noticed I was gone!!”

“It’s fine, we got this,” Sans protested. “I mean, it’s Papyrus—“

“Ink, get Sans and take him home,” Jewel said as she stood up.

“Jewel, it’s fine, I’m not scared of Papyrus,” Sans protested.

“And I’ve dealt with worse,” Ink added.

“It’s not you that I’m worried about.”

“D-don’t you fuckin’ look at me like that!” Red yelled, but it was clear, he was shaking.

“It’ll be less of a shock to see a human he doesn’t know, than three versions of his brother,” Jewel told them. “Remember, this Papyrus isn’t like many of the others. He’s ruthless, he will try and kill you before asking questions when he thinks he can get the answer out of Red.”

“That doesn’t exactly bode well for you,” Sans protested, but they heard him getting closer.

“Dude, I handled Nightmare, I can handle Papyrus. Ink, please!”

Ink frowned but agreed. He ran the water in the sink and used it to create a portal and grab Sans’ arm. “Come on. You wanted to be home before dinner anyway.”

Sans wanted to protest, but another glance toward Red made him relent. “Be careful,” he told them both, before heading with Ink through the portal.

Jewel watched them go and looked to Red, before gently putting a hand on his shoulder. “Remember, I got you.”

“I dun need yer pity,” he tried to be tough, but when the door slammed open, he jumped and hid behind her.

“SANS!!” Papyrus roared. He saw the shadow in the kitchen and followed it, only to be surprised with the one who stood at him with no fear in her eyes. “A human?” He noticed his brother’s form behind her.

“H-hey b-boss…” Red quietly spoke as he peered out from behind Jewel, gripping her arm a little in fear. He tried to hide it from Papyrus, it was only going to make him angrier.

“Sans, what is this human doing here?” he scolded, venom in his voice dripping from every word. “Are you truly so pathetic you cannot do the one job required of you when one of these… despicable creatures enters our territory!?”

“Sh-she’s not..” he was cut off.

“Wait… what’s with your head?”

“M-my head? N-Nuthin’!”

“Exactly! Don’t tell me you were so foolish to accept this animal’s help?! Is that how it so easily won you?! I suppose it doesn’t matter, I’ll deal with this myself.”

Papyrus shot bones out and Red tried to run in front of Jewel, but she pushed him behind her. She didn’t flinch at all and simply caught the one bone that would have hit her while the rest were for if she dodged, and simply destroyed it in her fist.

Papyrus’s look of confidence shook for a second before he summoned more. So she wasn’t going to move? Fine then! He shot out a barrage, some on the outer edges in case she dodged. Instead, she teleported and his bones slammed into the cabinets. Papyrus looked around for her but was caught completely off guard when she suddenly grabbed his arm and pulled it up into his back, twisting it and pushed him down toward the ground.

“J-Jewel! Dun hurt him!” Red pleaded, trying to pull her away from his brother.

“Sans, you pathetic, worthless piece of garbage!! Quit your sniveling and do something useful for once and get her off of me!!”

Red stared down at him, before looking up at Jewel, who put a hand on his. He noticed she didn’t have any malice in her. This was defensive.

“Oh, he is helping you,” she said, voice darker than what her eyes let on. She kept looking at Red, letting him know she wasn’t going to do anything to Papyrus. “He’s the only reason you’re not dead. Oh, there’s so much I could be doing to you right now.”

Papyrus tried to grab her soul, only to not feel it move when he tried. He tried to summon bones to pierce her, but he could feel them all shatter, though he wasn’t sure how.

“I mean, it’s a kill or be killed world, right?” she hissed back at him. “The strong survive, the weak perish. Isn’t that what you do, Papyrus? And you’d think, with the monster population so low, there’d be rules to prevent extinction by your own damn hands,” she hissed.

“If you’re so interested in killing me, do it!” Papyrus barked at her. “Or are you weak like my pathetic brother!”

“She is not weak!!” Red started barking. He couldn’t just sit by anymore. “She’s stronger than any of us! She can shatter my blasters, she can be run through with bone and nuthin’ will stop her! But she’s kind! She uses her powers ta help people! To help monsters! Yeah, she healed my head after ya nearly killed me dis morning! She’s my friend, Paps!”

Papyrus growled and tried to turn and get him, but Jewel pushed him away from Red.

“And as my friend,” Jewel narrowed her eyes at Papyrus, “I won’t let anyone lay a hand on him. Especially not his family. You want proof of strength, let’s go, Pappy.”

Papyrus’ eyes lit up with magic and he rushed at her. Jewel easily met him halfway and they were gone in an instant.

“Jewel! Pap!” Red called out and he paled, his face flush from images of what could happen. “No, no no!!” He teleported, trying to find them.

Papyrus found himself in an unfamiliar part of the Underground, strange for him, as he was separated from Jewel. It was still cold, but he hadn’t seen it.

“Where did you take me you-!”

“Oh quit with the name-calling. It’s unoriginal and you’re not going to hurt my feelings, Edgy,” she rolled her eyes. “We’re in the canyon underneath the bridge,” she pointed up, “Where you have your little death trap puzzle. You can’t get down here, not safely, if you can’t teleport. Sans can, but I doubt he’ll think about it. Which gives me plenty of time to beat some common sense into that thick skull of yours.”

Papyrus summoned more bones, some for hand-to-hand combat this time. He shot them at her, but she simply dodged every attack, no matter what he did. Unless she felt like blocking it.

“You’re not strong! You’re a coward! Quit running and FIGHT!”

“If you say so,” she replied. He rushed at her, but instead of running, she simply stood her ground, punching him square in the face as he rushed her, cracking the bone easily and sending him flying. He struggled to get up after such a hit, and Jewel just stood there. “Oh come now, I barely touched you.”

Papyrus sat in the snow, looking up at her. “W-what the fuck are you?! No human is this strong!”

“Dude, you deal with children, if any human at all. I’m a full-grown woman who has done a lot of shitty things in her life. That whole kill or be killed thing? Yeah, you know humans came up with that bull crap, right? I used to buy into it too.”

Papyrus stood, summoning more bones, trying to get her from underneath, behind, anywhere! What he saw was an invisible pulse escape her, shattering all but one bone, which she caught. Instead of shattering it, she threw it, purposely just missing Papyrus by mere centimeters, the air alone causing a cut along his cheekbone. The bone then hit the ground far enough behind him to shatter the earth with the force of a bomb. Papyrus turned, shaking a little. He hadn’t even seen Sans’ blasters do that much damage and he knew he could do more than what he had seen! What was he to do against this opponent? Nothing he did would do anything to her… he was overwhelmed… Papyrus fell to his knees, staring at the small crater.

“Power isn’t everything,” Jewel said as she walked over, Papyrus starting to tremble.

“Just… shut up and do it already… why must you drag it out? You clearly have more strength than I do…”

“I have no desire to kill you, Papyrus,” she told him. “Believe it or not, I understand. I used to be like you and Sans. I used to follow this world’s law like it was my own. Any threats were dealt with harshly. Some were swift if I was feeling merciful. But… I was empty. I thought it only mattered if I could defend myself. Hurting others seemed to be a good way to deal with the pain for a while but… it didn’t.” She looked over at him, he seemed to be listening. She then walked around him, facing him, a gentle hand finding its way to his cheek, glowing faintly white as she began to heal his wounds. “It’s hard to live in this kind of world. It’s harder to change… but sometimes, it takes more strength to do those things than to fight.”

Red had heard the explosion, but he had been far away, heading toward Waterfall. He quickly turned, teleporting the distance he could before making it down there, panting heavily. When he got there, he saw Papyrus on his knees, looking defeated, with his skull cracked on the right side. He immediately started running over, breathless, as he stood beside Jewel as she healed the injuries.

“Pap! Pap, oh my god!” Tears were in his eyes. “D-damn it, Pap! Why’d you go pokin’ the nest?”

Papyrus looked a bit confused. He treated Sans like dirt, put him through far worse than what Jewel had just put him through… why was he so upset?

“You know, Papyrus, you’re lucky to have a brother like Sans,” Jewel spoke up. “Despite everything you two have been through, despite the shitty way you treat him, he still loves you. He puts up with all your bullshit because of it. And I know you care about him too. It’s why you’re so hard on him.” She finished healing his face and she pulled back, which caused Red to go in and hug his little brother.

“I-I thought you… that explosion…”

Papyrus was silent, but the fact he was letting his brother hug him was a huge start, especially with someone to verify it.

Jewel watched the two for a little while. Papyrus seemed to be getting it through his skull. Slowly… he needed that little push. Damn, she hated telling this, but…

“You know… I did this with my brother too,” she said softly, causing the two skeletons to look toward her. “He wasn’t… prepared… for anything. Our dad started it, actually. Tried to toughen us both up like this. It… well, all it did was hurt him. At first, I tried to fight the battles for him. I mean, what else is a big sibling good for, eh? As a small child, I was pretty squishy, but I had a fierce temper, and a heavy fist so it worked pretty well… but then… well…” She looked a little down. “When I fell into the mindset of this world, getting into fights for the sake of it… I…” she sighed. “It eventually led me to losing my brother…” Red had more of a reaction than Papyrus, but to say he was unaffected would be a lie. “He’s gone now… I don’t… want to go into the details, no real point, but you need to be aware, Papyrus… that your actions do have consequences. My little brother didn’t love me at all and then…” There were a few tears in her eyes, but she didn’t let them fall. “You two have a bond you should cherish. I’m not saying you have to be all lovey-dovey or anything, that doesn’t really seem to be either of your styles, but… damn it, Papyrus… you could start by actually appreciating what your brother goes through! He tries so hard for you to be proud of him, yet you blow him off!”

Papyrus glanced over at Sans, who, for his part, was looking a little embarrassed at the last statement. “Do you really think that?” he asked.

“W-well… y-ya bro… I mean… the last time I got… well, anything not negative from ya was… the last time I managed to cook… I tried so hard on that… and you said “not bad”… it… literally made my week…”

Papyrus stared at him for a moment before looking down. He heard the crunching in the snow and looked up as Jewel came over, and put her hand in front of him.

“You don’t have to like me. I know I just put you through a hell of a rollercoaster. But Red is my friend. And I’m very protective of those. I normally don’t hesitate to hurt or kill someone who threatens them… but you’re a special case.”

Papyrus stared at her, and then her hand, before he took it, pulling himself up. “If nothing else, I respect your power,” he said, not admitting to anything more. “And… your concern for my brother’s wellbeing. Thank you… for healing his head earlier. I regretted doing that…”

“Pap…”

“Come on, you two,” Jewel said with a gentle smile. “Let me take you home. You look exhausted, Red, and I did just put you through the wringer, Paps.” Papyrus did not look pleased. “I’ll make you a spaghetti dinner so you can both rest.”

“That… actually sounds pretty good,” Red said softly, before looking to Papyrus.

“Ugh, fine… just don’t tell anyone,” he muttered.

Jewel smiled, put a hand on either brother’s shoulders and teleported them back home. It didn’t take her long to make the pasta or finish the cupcakes for that matter. She cleaned up the kitchen while the brothers sat on the couch and talked, civilly, for the first time in years. Once she was served the boys, a cupcake and spaghetti each, she simply smiled.

“All right, Red. I need to head on out.”

“Yer not even gonna have dinner with us?”

“I can’t. Before Papyrus came back I felt like something was wrong with Error. I’ve put off going to check on him long enough.”

Papyrus was confused, but Red seemed to know who she was talking about. “Ya felt it?” he questioned.

“It’s… weird, I know. But I just… I honestly feel bad it’s taken this long.”

Red stood up and put a hand on her shoulder. “Hey, ya gotta do what ya gotta,” he told her. “Thanks, for helpin’ with my bro and all… but if it was so bad ya coulda left.”

“No, I couldn’t,” she smiled at him and went in for a hug, which Red happily gave back. “I can never leave a friend in a lurch.” It just sucked she had to make a choice… it didn’t feel urgent for Error, not like the threat Papyrus posed.

“Heh, it’s gonna get you in trouble one of these days,” Red told her. “Now git goin’.”

Jewel pulled back from him, a smile still on her face. She rubbed his skull as if she would be mussing hair. Red did flinch at first, but quickly realized she wasn’t going to hurt him. “Take care of yourself, ya big bonehead. I’ll try and visit sooner next time.” And with that, she teleported off.

The second Jewel entered the anti-void, she barely dodged a laser. She saw Error on the floor in the center of a massive storm of bones and blasters. He was kneeling, hands clutching his skull. He didn’t even seem fully aware. He was just attacking with nothing left in the anti-void to destroy.

“Error!!” she called out, though that might have been a mistake. Everything seemed to focus completely on her at this point. “Oh shit,” she muttered.

Jewel tried to dodge as the lasers and bones all focused on her at once, but even she couldn’t avoid such an onslaught without just teleporting away. And that was not what she wanted to do, she couldn’t leave him like this. She tried to teleport around, but she would just have to teleport again. Error was attacking wildly, just filling every possible space with an attack and she was lucky as hell she was a second ahead of the attacks. But her luck didn’t last.

Jewel dodged a blaster only to be rammed through the stomach with a bone that appeared the second she came out of teleport. And then a second went through almost in the same spot.

“Error!” she called out, voice wet as blood forced its way back up. Her wounds were steaming already, and she tried to get up only to have another bone slam into her shoulder, breaking it, but not piercing through as she managed to grab that one.

She froze when she saw a blaster staring right in her face, flashbacks to the last time ringing through her mind. It was then she felt a portal open up beneath her and felt herself fall, but not before the blaster found itself laser-focused on her.

It hadn’t even been that long. Ink was still with Sans, talking about what was had been happening, wondering if Red and Jewel were all right. Both were taken by surprise when a portal opened up overhead as a red laser from a black blaster shot someone down and deep into the snow. Sans instantly reacted, blaster of his own up and shot the thing, making it stop. He would have gone after it but the portal closed.

“Jewel!!” Ink shouted, causing Sans to quickly turn and run over.

“Shit!” Sans exclaimed, seeing the bones still sticking out of her.

“Can you not shout?” she muttered, and both skeletons let out small sighs of relief. She wasn’t dead!

“What the hell happened?” flew out of Sans mouth before he could stop it, still freaking out.

Jewel groaned, trying to move. Ink and Sans both tried to stop her, but she waved them off. She grabbed the bones and dematerialized them, which surprised them both as she slowly rolled over, using one hand to get up, before holding her arm close to her core.

“I… don’t know…” she said, looking back up at where the portal had been.

“That was one of Error’s portals,” Ink verified.

“That was Error’s blaster and bones!” Sans shouted at him, how could he not recognize those?! “What the hell did he do to you?”

“I don’t…” she coughed, blood splattering the snow.

“Oh my god, Jewel!” Sans started to panic.

“I’m fine, I’m fine,” Jewel tried to wave him off.

“You are NOT fine!”

“I just need to sleep it off.”

“You are definitely going home, now!” Sans said, teleporting her home, leaving Ink alone.

“Hey!” Ink protested. Not like he didn’t know where they were going but still! Rude!

Sans instantly put Jewel in his room, laying her on his bed. “Stay here, I’ll get bandages!”

She tried to stop him, but he didn’t listen. She sighed and closed her eyes. She didn’t feel as safe here, but she didn’t have much choice… Error got her good… A lung was damaged.

Sans came back with a first aid kit and saw her with her eyes closed. “No, no, no!” he panicked and went over to her. “Jewel, wake up!” he pleaded. He shook her, trying anything. He felt her left arm give under his hand and he pulled back, realizing it was broken… and that didn’t even wake her!

Ink finally made it and went upstairs to Sans' room, not seeing any traces in the house otherwise. He saw Sans in a panic and came over. “Is she breathing?” Ink asked quickly.

“I-I don’t know! I can’t tell!”

Ink leaned in, listening for her heartbeat, which he heard before the slight wheezing in her chest. He let out a breath. But as he pulled back a little, he noticed the very faint glowing.

“I think… she’s healing herself,” Ink realized.

“What?” Sans asked but when Ink pointed out the faint glow, he realized. “The fact she healed so quickly before… “Sleeping it off”… she shuts everything down to focus her energy on repairing the damage.”

“Yeah, after…” Ink noticed her stomach, where the blood had been, was all black, “Apparently doing something…”

“Just what the hell is she?” Sans muttered softly.

“Maybe we can get some answers when she wakes up,” Ink said as he sat by Sans. How long would this take?


	11. Chapter 11 - Similarities

# Chapter 11 – Similarities

“No, no, no, no, nonono, nononononononono!”

He couldn’t talk, he couldn’t move. Tears just kept streaming down his face. He couldn’t even hear the sounds of his blasters or his bones… But he did hear her. What the hell was she doing back?! She was having so much fun, why the fuck did she come back?? He couldn’t control what was happening. Instinct was just… he didn’t mean for his attacks to go after her! He did what he could, it took so much of his strength to pull up a portal and try to get her out. He sent her back to Classic, it was the only thing he could think to do. But doing so hurt so much, especially after..!

_See, you hurt her again! You can’t have friends! All she tried to do was come back to you and you attack her! It’s the worst one yet, too! How much longer until you kill her?_

His voice rang through his head, everything just… hurt! “Sh… shut up!” he suddenly screamed, punching the ground around him, which was littered with crystal shards and dust. “Shut up! Shut up!!” He felt his hands start to hurt, his blaster started coming toward him. In a fit of rage, he grabbed his blaster and slammed his head into it, screaming, “SHUT UP!!”

His breath trembled as he continued to cry, blood pouring from his head and his hands, his bones all cut up from the crystal and his head cracked from the blaster. His bones and other blasters disappeared. He was alone in his empty space again. He fell to his knees, holding himself up with his bloody hands, tears falling and hitting the floor. His glitching was getting worse. He could barely keep himself together.

“Just crash, damn it! Fucking crash and get it over with!” he yelled at himself. “Why can’t I..?”

He felt that warmth on his chest again, though it wasn’t that close. The necklace under his shirt was falling away from him and he pressed it against his sternum. It was painful, but at the same time, he needed it right now. He managed to lay down and curl up, holding that necklace against his bones. Why? Why did he need this so badly? But slowly, he closed his eyes, feeling that warmth. It renewed the pain, tears flowing, but his glitching slowed and he finally crashed.

Sans hadn’t wanted to leave Jewel in that coma-like state. But he had a job to do… Ink offered to stay and keep an eye on her. Sure, he had a job to do too, but it could wait until Sans came back and they could swap shifts. It was like this for three days. Ink was starting to worry his initial assessment was wrong. It only took her two days to come back before… but this was a worse injury…

He saw her stirring, and instantly he called for Sans, who had been downstairs getting ready for work. In a second, Sans teleported up and saw her. “Jewel!” he called to her, sitting beside her.

“You two are always so loud,” she muttered, covering her face. “How the hell is it so bright in the Underground, there’s no sun.”

Ink went over and turned off the light, which seemed to help her, she wasn’t as tense. “Does anything hurt?” he asked.

“Just my head… been doing that too often now…” she muttered.

“How often is that?” Sans asked with a clear cause in mind.

“Dude, I just got acid burnt from Nightmare after he nearly fried my brain. I literally _just_ healed from that. Going into comas like that takes a lot of magic, especially back to back…”

“I can imagine… it was… weird, to see how you heal,” Sans admitted as he looked at where her wounds were.

Jewel groaned. “Don’t expect an explanation,” she muttered.

“Why not?” Sans protested.

“Because it’s none of your business.”

“Come on, Jewel,” Ink tried, seeing Sans getting frustrated. “We’re just worried about you. Can’t you tell us, as friends? This isn’t the first time we’ve seen you hurt. The more we know, the more we can help you.”

“All you need to know is I’m vulnerable like that, obviously. I don’t do it unless I have no choice, or I feel safe enough to do so.”

“So… which was it this time?” Sans asked, testing his boundaries.

Jewel sighed. “It’s… not as safe as I would like. Too many people around,” she admitted. “But I knew you two wouldn’t let anything happen. Especially you,” she said, poking Sans in the sternum without even opening her eyes. “You’re literally trying to be my big brother.”

Ink blinked. “Omg, she’s right!” he laughed. “You are!”

“Shut up, Ink!” Sans snapped at him a little, before looking down at Jewel. “So what if I am? Is that wrong?”

Jewel’s face, while a little lighthearted before, even if in discomfort, fell into one that was nearly unreadable. “Don’t try and be my family, Sans… it won’t end well.”

Ink and Sans looked at one another, before back to her. That was somber… “Is that a threat?” Sans carefully asked and Ink elbowed him in the ribs.

Slowly, she got up, a dark look in her eyes, though even to Ink, it was clear it wasn’t malice. Just… pain… “I don’t want another brother,” was all she said as she got up. She pushed passed the skeletons, but Sans wasn’t letting her go. He grabbed her arm, staring her down. She just simply looked back. “You realize I’m not like you, right? I can still teleport and not take anyone with me, even if they’re touching me.”

“But touching you, I can follow easier,” he pointed out.

“Not through the multiverse. You wanna turn into Error? That might be your best case scenario if you don’t straight up die.”

That information did make Sans hesitate, but he didn’t let go. “You won’t risk it,” he declared, staring her down.

“You’re a ballsy little skeleton, you know that?” she muttered before sighing. “Look my clothes are bloodstained and ripped, I just wanna get changed, maybe shower if you’re cool letting me use yours. I’m too damn tired to argue.”

Sans watched her carefully. She did look tired, which was not normal for her just popping up… maybe she didn’t go to them right after waking up from this before… “Where were you going to get clothes here?” he then asked.

“I… need to go to an AU. There’s one where all the monsters are human, and they’ve got what I need.”

“Oh, I know that one! But you don’t have to go anywhere, I can just paint you some new clothes!” Ink offered.

“I think that’s a better idea,” Sans agreed. “If you’re really this tired, you shouldn’t be teleporting off to AUs. You should rest. Though I suppose a shower wouldn’t hurt.” He was trying to be considerate, but he didn’t want her running off. Especially not with what he saw when she fell…

Jewel let out a relenting sigh. “Fine… whatever you want to make, Ink,” she muttered.

Ink grinned and began to think what she might like based on what he had seen her in. With his giant brush, he painted in a change of clothes in seconds. He picked them up off the floor he had used as a temporary canvas before handing them to her. They were folded neatly, as strange as it was, even to an artist like herself.

“Here ya go, Jewel,” Ink smiled.

“Thanks,” she half-smiled a little before Sans started to show her where the bathroom was, getting her a towel and everything from the closet it.

Sans waited in the living room, listening for the water, hoping she wouldn’t try and teleport out of there. Ink had followed and watched him for a while.

“Ya know… maybe you should drop the whole brother thing,” he suggested.

“Why?” Sans rose a brow at him.

“That look she had… something happened. Something bad. Error had that same look whenever I brought up his Papyrus… only he was more violent, obviously. She doesn’t want to talk about it, and you shouldn’t force her.”

Sans sighed a little. “I guess you’re right… I’m just worried about her. You know she’s going to go back to Error, even after he just did this to her!”

“She’s a loyal friend.”

“Or stupid.”

“Sans!”

“Come on, Ink! The first two she agrees to be friends with are murders? She’s either stupid, desperate or-“

“Or she can see the good in people!” Ink protested. “You haven’t even known her that long, Sans, you can’t go making judgments on her.”

“That’s kind of my job,” he muttered.

“And what does her soul say, huh?”

Sans blinked a little.

“Yeah, that’s what I thought. You can see it either, can you? Her soul is special. Error couldn’t rip it out either, and he was desperately trying when we first came across her.”

“Doesn’t that make you want to know?” Sans questioned. “She doesn’t follow our rules, she has all these powers, she’s befriending anyone.”

“No. She’s reaching out to people who want to reach out to her first. I don’t think she’s all that close to any of us. It’s a front. She cares, but she’s keeping herself at a distance.”

“And how would you know?” Sans asked. “No offense, but you can’t really…” he tried to find the words.

“That’s precisely how I know.” He clutched the vials on his chest. “My emotions aren’t my own. I watch enough to try and fake it as best I can. So I can tell when emotions are fake, or… when someone tries to keep people at arm’s length so they don’t learn the truth.” He looked down before looking back toward the bathroom. “I think that’s why she’s closer to Red and Error than us. They won’t pry because they have their own secrets. To them, sharing the pain is showing weakness. We want to talk everything out. She feels a connection with them…”

Sans listened to Ink, surprised by the amount of insight and true emotion he showed right there. It was one of the deeper moments he had seen since knowing him. And he realized he was kind of hypocritical. He wanted everyone to talk to him, but he never really said anything about what was bothering him… that didn’t leave a good taste in his mouth.

“I suppose I can’t fault her for that,” he said with a sigh. “But forcing it a little seemed to work before. Three days ago, she didn’t even consider us friends.”

“I don’t know if she still does,” Ink admitted sadly. “Not like Error at least, or even Red. She might be humoring us.”

That was hard to hear. Sans thought they connected the other day. But if anything, Ink was honest when it came to how he felt… or lack thereof. At least he had been with him so far. 

Either way… he should probably talk to Jewel about it, since, well… Ink had good insight, but it was flawed.

Jewel wasn’t in the shower long, thankfully. She came out dressed in her new clothes, a light blue, almost cyan thick hoodie with a high collar. Her jeans were a dark navy. He even made her new shoes, blue and navy with splashes of color throughout the white parts of it. Her shirt was thick and had a hood, she looked comfortable. But she still had the towel and was drying her short hair.

“Thanks for the clothes, Ink. I really love this,” she said with a smile.

Ink grinned. “Everyone likes comfy clothes!”

Sans chuckled. “Looks like blue’s your color too,” he said with a cheesy grin.

Jewel chuckled. “Eh, yeah, I suppose. I try to avoid it because of the eyes, ya know? They’re steel blue, so when I wear blue it doesn’t look right.”

“Looks fine to me,” Ink grinned.

“Says the dude who blushes in rainbow,” Jewel teased, but Ink laughed.

“Heh, you sound like you’re feeling better,” Sans said, motioning for her to sit with him on the couch.

Jewel walked over and sat down, shrugging a bit as she sat down. “I feel like I could sleep a week,” she said as she leaned back.

“You’ve already beaten my record. Papyrus would never let me sleep three days,” Sans grinned.

Jewel chuckled. “Just wait until you don’t have a choice,” she said, lightly flicking his skull.

“Hey, watch the 1HP,” he joked, rubbing his head with a grin, but after a moment, he looked a little more serious. “Jewel… about earlier…”

“Look, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to sound like an ass. I was just tired, and it’s a sore subject. I try and avoid it…”

“We’re here if you wanna talk about it,” Ink offered, sitting on the other side of her.

“Talking isn’t going to help. Believe me, I’ve had my time to reflect on it all, and I just… don’t like talking about it. Hard enough I had to be vague with Red’s Papyrus to get a point across.”

“What point was that?” Sans then asked.

“That brothers shouldn’t be taken for granted and that the whole kill or be killed mentality they had, especially with each other was only going to cause them to lose each other.”

“So, I was right, that whole thing with Sans trying to be your big brother was a sore spot!” Ink declared.

“Ink, not the time,” Sans tried.

“No, it’s fine. I kind of opened the door on that one… I’m the one who brought it up then and now,” Jewel said softly, before turning to Sans. “You got coffee here, or am I gonna have to pull an Error and steal it from an Au?”

Sans chuckled a little. “Nah, I got coffee. Hang on, I’ll start a pot.”

“You sure? I mean, kinda easy,” she teased. “Aren’t you gonna get in trouble with Papyrus for skipping?”

“Eh, I’ve been working pretty steadily waiting for you to wake up,” Sans answered as he walked into the kitchen, still talking from there. “Ink and I have been taking shifts making sure you didn’t take a turn for the worse.”

“How much of it did you sleep through?” she teased.

“Only some,” he admitted with a slight grin in the kitchen. “Mostly slept on shift,” he chuckled.

Ink sat there, beaming. “Papyrus already headed out for the day, but he’ll probably be back. You know it couldn’t hurt for you to spend some time with him too, he’s pretty upbeat. You sound like you need it.”

“Eh… too much energy is a bit much for me sometimes…”

“Is that why you don’t like UnderSwap? That Sans has too much energy?”

“Partly. Papyrus is a sweetheart and just too damn pure for this world… put that in a Sans and you’re asking for trouble with the tiny package and all. And then you have the other creators who just add 100 times the sugar to him on top of it, and it’s just… holy crap.”

Ink laughed a little. “Yeah, I tend to hang out with OG Blueberry,” he grinned.

“Why blueberry anyway? Blueberries are tart.”

Ink blinked. “No, they’re not, they’re sweet.”

“Not the ones I keep getting, bleh.”

Ink blinked then laughed a little. “I suppose Blueberry can be a little “tart” himself when you cross him, but really, like the fruit, he’s really sweet.”

“Either way, I’m not really in the right mindset to meet him,” Jewel said softly.

It was awkward, Ink wanted to say more but he didn’t know what. He could argue it, but she would fight back and it wouldn’t go anywhere. Eventually, Sans came back with a cup of coffee and some sugar and creamer floating beside him.

“Too lazy to carry it?” Ink teased. Sans shrugged with a grin.

“I don’t take cream, but thank you,” she said as she took the sugar and the cup, pouring in a little before he took it back from her. She sipped it and it was like it went straight to her soul. She seemed to perk up a little bit.

“Is coffee really that good?” Ink asked.

Sans and Jewel both looked at him. “You’ve never had any?” Sans asked.

“Well, no, not really.”

“Don’t give him any,” Jewel then laughed. “He doesn’t need the caffeine. The last thing we need is Ink bouncing off the walls.”

Sans chuckled him. “Yeah, he kind of does that well enough on his own.”

“Hey, I’m not that bad,” Ink playfully pouted.

Outside, a portal opened up. Error stepped out of it, quiet, holding that little doll of Jewel close to him. His necklace was glowing slightly and he tried to hide it with his coat, pulling it closer. It had been doing that for a while now, and he wasn’t certain why. But Error was tired. He hadn’t slept since he had crashed, not that time passed in the anti-void and he didn’t _need_ to sleep, but after using so much magic, a break was needed. But instead, he kept looking in on Jewel, waiting for her to wake up. He needed to talk to her. He needed to apologize. When he saw her awake, talking to Sans and Ink, despite his feelings about Ink being there, he had to go and find her. He was outside of the window by the couch, about to go inside, when he started hearing something that made him stop and listen.

Sans chuckled as he sat back down on the other side of Jewel. “So… Jewel… can we talk?”

“About?” she asked carefully.

“What happened.”

“Specifics, a lot happens.”

“With Error.”

Error froze outside. What was this about?

Jewel stopped sipping her coffee and pulled her cup down. “What do you want to know? Because I really don’t know what I can tell you. I wasn’t even there long.”

“I’m just worried about you,” he started. “Error isn’t the kind of guy you should be hanging around. He goes around murdering people for fun, destroying worlds. And you call him your friend… but then he goes and almost kills you. Again! He ran you through and blasted you!”

Jewel was silent for a moment, before taking a breath. “I know.”

The silence along was hard to hear, but then she said… Error was frozen as he continued to listen.

“He’s hot-headed and quick to take his anger out on whatever’s around. You say one thing that could mean nothing and he takes it completely out of context, thinking you’re making fun of him and goes off. And he doesn’t apologize for anything…”

“He’s never apologized for almost _killing you?!_ ” Sans then demanded to know. “That’s not a friend, that’s a sociopath!”

“Sans…”

“No, Jewel, I’m putting my foot down! Seriously, how many times has he attacked you?!”

Jewel didn’t answer.

“You went from having fun in UnderFell to being blasted out of a portal back into my world! Why did he do it? Because you were hanging out with us?? You said before he got angry simply because you could draw like Ink!”

“I don’t know why, okay?!” she snapped at him. “I have no idea what happened this last time!”

“And you’re still willing to defend him when he attacks you for no reason?!”

“Maybe there was a reason, I don’t know! I literally teleported in and he was-“

“He didn’t even say anything to you?! Jewel, this is insane, you realize that, right? Why the hell do you keep defending him?! He’s a psychotic killer who has nearly added you to his list half a dozen times!”

Error had always respected Classic, but this was hard on him. He knew everything he said was true. He had never once apologized… she forgave him and they moved on, it was never necessary… was it? But that was also why he kept trying to push her away. He didn’t know why he kept having these… images plague his mind. He didn’t know why he kept second-guessing everything he was doing. And right now, all he wanted to do was blast Classic and take her back. But that wasn’t going to help things! He slumped against the side of the house, shaking. But what he heard next…

“I know, okay?! Do you have to keep yelling at me for it?! I know how many times he’s hurt me, I know how his temper gets! I’m there, you’re not! You think I don’t see the red flags?!”

His soul shattered. Tears started flowing. She agreed with him? He looked down at the little plush in his hands, squeezing it tightly. Not in a malicious way, but just… he opened a portal and ran through it.

“But you also don’t see what I see!” Jewel snapped back at Sans. “He has a temper but damn it if he’s not the sweetest thing behind it! I don’t know what the hell he went through, but god damn it, Sans, it wasn’t pretty! I don’t even have to ask him, but I know damn well the signs because I’ve been there! He has no one, he’s left alone! He attacks the AUs because they just remind him of how he’s been abandoned! You don’t even know how much he respects you, do you?”

“Oh, he “respects me”,” Sans rolled his eyes, only to be stunned when Jewel slapped him across the face.

“Fuck you!” she barked, standing up.

“Whoa, whoa! Can we calm down, please?” Ink pleaded, jumping up and getting between them. “Jewel, please, take a breath! You’ve been through enough, please, I don’t want you to lose control.”

Jewel took a shaky breath and took a few steps back. She was visibly shaking and Ink turned to Sans, who was stunned that he was just slapped. It wasn’t exactly something he was used to.

“Jewel, what the hell?!” he shouted at her, and Ink tried to get him to quiet down.

“Would you just stop, Sans?” Jewel pleaded, her voice trembling.

Ink looked at Sans a little harshly before trying to go back over to her. She wouldn’t let him touch her, and he respected that boundary, but still stayed close. “Jewel…”

Sans stared at her a little, before sighing softly. “Maybe I did go overboard… I’m just… worried about you, Jewel. You seem to just forgive everything he does, and you shouldn’t! He’s not going to change just because you want him to.”

“Why? Because you won’t?” she asked him, turning back. “You got along with Red just fine, you know he tried to kill me when we first met too, right?” she countered. “He’s a murderer too, killed all kinds of monsters.”

Sans couldn’t argue that point. “He…”

“He has a temper too,” she added in, before Ink spoke up.

“Okay, we get it, please,” he pleaded.

Sans looked up at her. Ink’s words from earlier rang through his mind and with all of this… After several moments of silence, he couldn’t keep it in anymore. “Do you not care about us, Jewel?” Sans then asked, his voice breaking. She glanced back, he was staring at her, his eyes misty and that almost permanent smile was gone. “You won’t talk to me, you act like this is all normal. I just… I care about you, but if you don’t care about us…”

“Sans…” she said softly, then she glanced back at Ink, who was having a hard time looking at her. She then let out a soft sigh. “If I didn’t care about you, I would have left by now,” she said softly. “It wouldn’t have… hurt so much… what you said…”

“You’ve got a funny way of showing it,” he countered her.

“Damn it, would you stop!?” she raised her voice. “This, this is exactly what I’m talking about! Do you not hear how hypocritical you sound right now?? You’re talking about me opening up, not talking, but you put down everything I say!”

“You’re not being rational, especially when it comes to-“

“Oh, don’t start,” she cut him off. “You don’t get the right to talk to me about that when you don’t even know what you’re talking about! And until you actually let me fucking defend him instead of cutting me off, you’re not getting jack shit from me.”

“Please, just stop!” Ink shouted. He looked between the two of them. “This isn’t helping! Sans, she’s right, you’re not letting her say anything! But Jewel, you’re blowing off his concern like he doesn’t know what he’s talking about either!”

“That’s because he doesn’t,” Jewel protested, causing Sans’ to rile up, but she didn’t give him a chance to speak. “Do you even realize why I’m here?? Because of Error! He knows you don’t like him that much! But he has respect for you! He doesn’t like to share _anything_ , but when I told him I couldn’t handle going with him to kill AUs, he told me to come here! And three days ago, that episode, I don’t think he was in control! His attacks were all over the place, and the one deliberate thing was that portal. The _fucking portal_ that _dropped me in front of you two_! Do you get it yet, Sans?? He trusts _you_ enough with _me_! When, exactly as you put it, the second he thought I was taking Ink’s side, going to leave him for Ink, he went ballistic! None of you even know how much you affect his life, even without constant interaction!”

Sans couldn’t find the words that bounced and left his head almost as instantly as he thought of them. He couldn’t comprehend _why_ Error would respect him… they weren’t friends, most of their interactions were fighting… though he knew enough not to poke a sleeping beast when Error came by without ill intent. This last time… he had just lost his brother… he just wanted him gone…

Finally, after a long silence between them all, Ink spoke up. “…we affect him?” he asked softly. “How? Error and I… we don’t get along at all, we’re always at odds.”

“Because of your personal views on the AUs,” Jewel replied, significantly calmer after having gotten that out. That, or she wasn’t mad at Ink and was trying not to take it out on him. “I don’t think he outright hates you. Given that he’s made a puppet of you.”

“What?” Ink blinked.

“Error’s… quite a creative person too,” she said softly. “He’s been trying to teach me to crotchet, I fail miserably, but he tries. He’s… also made puppets of a lot of the Sanses he’s come across… They’re… his friends,” she said carefully, before staring the two of them down. “Do you get it? He’s so lonely he’s made _puppets_ to be his only friends, so he has someone to talk to. And you know which one was his first? _Ol’ Classic_ ,” she said, eyes narrowing a little as she snapped her fingers, the old puppet falling in her hand.

It was the first time she had used her more obscure power to teleport something with a snap in front of them, and they were surprised by it as much by the revelation that Error had a creative side. Jewel slipped the puppet on her hand, something she had gotten used to over her time with Error.

“Oh boy,” Jewel mimicked Sans’ voice for the puppet, “I bet you have a _skele-ton_ of questions right about now,” she had him put his hands in the pockets of the coat. “Well, I might have _humerus_ ’ed you, but _tibia_ honest, I don’t really appreciate you _ribbing_ on my friend.”

If it wasn’t so serious, both Sanses might have laughed, but Jewel had that look of where they thought better of it.

“Do you understand, Sans? To him, you were the first one who didn’t outright despise him. He’s constantly trying to rationalize why I should hate him, we still argue about it from time to time. He has anxiety just like you do. That almost every Sans has. He’s lost. But he has gotten better, so much better.”

Sans was quiet, but he slowly walked over, his eyes focused on the puppet of him. It looked old, worn… how long had he had it? “He’s… used this with you?”

“Yeah. Well, now he lets me play you,” she said softly, “So he trusts me with his oldest friend. That, and I’m not the best puppeteer with the new ones… but he has a few other old ones like this, one of Red actually, and Blueberry… I don’t get to touch those. He doesn’t use them much, actually…”

“What about me?” Ink spoke up, almost pouting a little. He then realized it and sweated. “I mean, uh…”

Jewel chuckled a little. “Well, yeah.” She snapped and the little Ink plush, on strings came into her hand. She took Classic off of her hand and let Sans examine it, before slipping the Ink puppet on.

“Wait, are those his strings?” Ink realized.

“Yeah. He uses them for thread sometimes, and for the controls,” she said as she used her hand to make the little puppet move around. “Look, your brush is even hold-able,” she said as she showed him how it snapped off his back and was able to be held in his little puppet hands.

“He’s put a lot of effort into these…” Sans said softly.

“He has nothing else to do. He’s left alone, in isolation in the anti-void… which corrupts things as time goes on.”

“What do you mean?” Sans asked.

“I mean, it’s in the code. I’ve checked it out a little while I’m there, just out of curiosity’s sake. It corrupts… the anti-void itself is what caused…”

“Wait, are you…”

“It doesn’t matter, I suppose,” she said softly. “Error doesn’t remember what he was before-hand, I’m assuming. He’s never talked to me about it, and even if he did, it’s not my place to say anything. I can’t imagine he’d be happy I’m showing you these,” she motioned to the puppets. Sans handed the puppet of him back to her and she snapped them back to where they belong.

“I never knew Error could be creative,” Ink said softly in awe.

“You’ve never gotten to really know him.”

“Well, to be fair, he’s usually trying to, ya know, murder everything,” Sans pointed out.

“True,” she said softly. “But you get why I’m in a unique spot, right? I don’t have to worry as much about that kind of thing, and he gave up trying, so I managed to get to know him on a level you never knew he had. He really does care in his way.”

“It doesn’t excuse what he’s done, Jewel,” Sans tried. “I’m just… I worry about you. He’s hurt you before and to see him actually do it…”

“Sans, I’m fine. Tired, but fine. He didn’t mean to. And believe me, he’s had his chances… I’ve… told him to do it,” she said softly.

“What?” Sans’ head snapped up to look at her, a feeling of horror washing over him.

“I’ve told him to kill me. It’s hard, but it’s doable. He can’t pull my soul out, but it’s still just as vulnerable to him, if not a bit more durable than what he’s used to. Pretty sure he realized this in our first meeting… but since then, he hasn’t tried. He hasn’t lashed out at me since our fight regarding Ink. And honestly, I didn’t help that by running away. I left him alone for weeks after he blasted me.”

“You still sound like you’re making excuses for his temper,” Sans pointed out.

“Well, how would you feel if you lashed out at Papyrus in anger and he ran off? All you wanted to do was find him and talk it out, but he avoided you? How much would that hurt?”

Sans eyes widened a little and he clenched his shirt in his hand over his soul. “I’m the one who would run away, not Pap…”

“Then how do you think that would affect Papyrus? He’d been pretty upset.”

“But, Pap is my brother, Error’s not…”

“My only friend at the time, Sans. And vice versa. I had just met Red at this point, but… well, I was still in a dark headspace. I was trying to calm down. It’s harder for me to do so when I can’t get my feelings out, either on paper or,” her hand went over her left arm and she rubbed it a bit. “I already did some serious damage with one of Red’s bones. I had enough common sense to not take a knife to my arm too like I usually would, or burn myself so…”

“Stop, just stop,” Ink pleaded, a hand over hers. He looked a little ill. “I can’t… I can’t get that image out of my head… the one thing I can’t forget and I want to… I still don’t… why would you even do something like that? It’s still not… not healed is it?”

“No,” she said softly. “But it’s… a way to change the pain, I suppose. I can take pretty much anything, physically. It’s… complicated, I suppose. Magic, how it affects me, everything… but it’s a lot easier, for anyone, to handle physical pain than the emotional torment. When I get like that, it’s like a black cloud has surrounded me, I can’t breathe, I can’t think. When I turn and do… something like that, it’s like it clears up. It dissipates and I can finally think. Regret is sometimes there, other times not… depends on the circumstance that led me to that point.”

“That doesn’t make it okay,” Sans said softly, putting his hand on hers too. “And the fact that Error made you feel that way, to begin with…”

“He didn’t, though,” she said softly. “Not… not like you think. We fought because…”

“Because of me,” Ink said softly.

“No. Because I… was having issues with friendship again,” she said softly. She rubbed her head with her free hand as the two looked at her. “Like what I said with you two before… Error and I were… well… shaky in those first steps. We spent a lot of time together, I just wanted to get to know him. I was trying to keep my rules, not get too close. But he was… just as desperate for attention as I was. When we first started, he assumed I was like you, Ink, just wanting to be friends. I told him I don’t like the labels for the sake of it, which is true. I’m not going to meet someone and decide right then if we’re friends or not. I have to get to know the person.”

“Fair enough statement,” Sans agreed. He could be friendly but to call someone a friend just when you meet them? Even he couldn’t judge that quickly.

“I thought so. But when I got back from showing Ink that AU to fix up, and I told Error… he went off like I created a world just for Ink to go play in. I don’t have that ability, despite what all of you think. Even though I had taken and helped him destroy five at that point didn’t seem to register at all. He grabbed my bag with my art supplies and blasted it. I think he thought if he could destroy the one thing he could see that reminded him of Ink, he’d destroy a connection he thought we had. And I’ll admit, it hurt. I’m very attached to my supplies and the only things in that sketchbook were sketches I had done of Error since we had met. I think he felt bad, but I... said something stupid. We started arguing and in a fit of anger he summoned a blaster in front of me. I didn’t even have time to think to teleport, it went off. Granted it… well, it burned a little, but I think I got more damage from hitting the crystal. It… the fact he attacked did hurt a little, that he was attacking me because he kept putting words in my mouth, assuming things without letting me speak,” she glanced at Sans, who kind of sunk back a little. How much did he have in common with Error?

“But it wasn’t… what put you in that headspace?” Ink realized slowly.

“No. It was… something else. A pattern that I’ve lived through… how shit like this always happens. What’s happened…” she sighed a little. “Somehow, someway, everyone I care about gets hurt and I’m at the center. I wound up teleporting to UnderFell for some reason and with all the old memories, and Red appearing to try and do, ya know… the seventh human soul and all… I didn’t want to hurt him, but I think I scared him pretty bad. He went from trying to kill me to talking so… I don’t know…”

Sans was quiet for a long moment. “All this time… I thought it was because of Error… that he said or did something… I mean, technically he did, but it wasn’t… what I thought…”

“You don’t know him that well, Sans. You know the side that attacks AUs… You don’t…” she sighed a little. She snapped and held the little Error plush in her hands. “He made this for me because I asked. During that fight, in the time I had been gone, he made one of me. We had a little moment of how weird it was to be our own friends when I asked him to make one of himself after he offered the plush of me to be my friend. When he finished it, you know what he said? “Maybe he can be a better friend to you than me.” He’s a proud skeleton, he owns what he is, what he does. But the fact he… he has a soft side that he doesn’t show often. He actually…”

“What?” Sans asked though he couldn’t keep his eyes off how she held that little plush so lovingly.

“He took care of me,” she said softly. “In Overtale, after the fight, after he realized I had been hiding from him, that I was hurt and after I yelled and demanded he kill me… it upset him so much he crashed.”

“Crashed?” Sans and Ink both looked at her, confused.

“Like an old computer,” she said softly. “He has these moments that just… either he gets too emotionally overwhelmed or something just can’t make sense to him. He glitches out and crashes.”

Ink couldn’t help but snicker. “That’s… strangely endearing.”

“Not when you have to witness one. Especially when they take so long to take him, it’s… it looks painful, it sounds painful… it probably is and he won’t tell me.” She glanced down at the little plush, gently stroking the face with her thumb. “Especially when you can’t help him through it. He can’t stand being touched, it freaks him out. He accidentally bumped my hand once and he severely glitched out, screaming to get away from him. We barely touched for a second, just a little graze when he tried to reach out for something I had.”

“I think I remember something like that,” Ink spoke up. “I was trying to convince him to stop attacking an AU and I went to put a hand on his shoulder. He flipped out and started attacking me. I thought it was just because he didn’t want to be friends.”

“Sounds about right,” Jewel spoke up. “If he sees it coming, he gets defensive and if you surprise him he lashes out and attacks. And given your history…”

“So, has he lashed out on you for that?” Sans asked.

“I mean, he smacked my hand away when we touched but I can’t fault him for that.”

“And didn’t you push him out of the way when Chara attacked?” Ink remembered. “I don’t remember him reacting.”

“He glitched out a little. It surprised him but we’re friends and it was to protect him. He freaks out but it wasn’t like I grabbed him to give him a hug or something. Still riled up but it had a good reason, he wasn’t going to lash out for it. That and there was a threat to worry about. And letting him deal with Chara was good for him.”

“So, I don’t get it,” Sans said suddenly. “You said he took care of you. But it sounds like you took care of him. How did he?”

“Got a little sidetracked, I suppose,” she said softly. “After he crashed, he saw me trying to wrap up my arm. When he strung me up, the bandage bled through, it was worthless. It was hard, but the first thing out of his mouth when he saw it was demanding to know who hurt me. He threatened everything they had. When I told him I had done it, he froze. I snapped a “are you happy now?” at him and he just stared at me and said “no.” He sat down with me and despite his fear of being touched, he did what he could. He used his strings to pull my hand out and toward him, holding it straight and then used them to take the bandages and wrap up the wound. Despite everything, he took care of me. And we really started talking. Apologies weren’t exchanged or anything but it was insinuated. He really surprised me that day.”

“So he…”

“He really cares about you, doesn’t he?” Ink realized.

“I think more than he’s used to,” Jewel said softly. “He’s been… pushing me away lately. Not successfully, but that was why he pushed me to visit you the other day. He made up an excuse to go destroy an AU, told me to come here… He’s been doing what he can to back off… I think he’s scared of something… Nightmare didn’t help, that was for sure…”

“I wonder if he’s worried you’ll be mad at him since he’s worked with Nightmare before. But Error would be the one guy I would want around if you’re trying to avoid Nightmare. Nightmare is cold and calculating, but so is Error. He’s also erratic, which Nightmare can’t plan for. And despite his strings not being able to get at Nightmare, he keeps a healthy distance,” Ink explained.

“I’m not worried about Nightmare. But I think Error is. And I really shouldn’t have left him alone as long as I have… I should go find him.”

“Jewel, you’re not fully recovered. I mean, physically, you’re fine, but you said it yourself you’re exhausted,” Sans protested. “And what if he’s still lashing out? You can’t take another hit like that. You’ve been using your powers too much, you said it yourself.”

“I’ll go with her,” Ink volunteered. “Error will focus on me, not her if he’s upset.”

“Ink, no…” Jewel protested.

“Jewel, it’s okay! I can handle myself, I’m used to going at it with Error! Besides, if you’re this depressed, you should really have your sketchbook, and I can make you a new one. Let’s talk to him together! Maybe he’ll be willing to talk with me if you’re there and we can put a lot of this nastiness behind us. And I want him to know I don’t want to steal you away from him. I want to be friends, but I’m never going to get between you guys.”

She sighed softly. “All right…”

Ink grinned and grabbed her arm. With his brush, he enveloped them in ink and they were gone.

Sans stared at where they were and sat back down. He glanced at the coffee cup she hadn’t finished and he felt a pang of guilt run through him. Was he wrong to care about her this much? Was he like Error? What in the world had this come to…

“Sans, come on!” he suddenly heard from outside.

He smiled softly. “Guess I should focus on my own brother for a while… instead of a sister who doesn’t want me…”


	12. Chapter 12 - Search and Discovery

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Finally getting a little backstory on Jewel, and a little exploration of hers and Ink's relationship.

# Chapter 12 – Search and Discovery

Jewel blinked as they appeared in the Doodlesphere, and she looked around, confused. “Ink, what are we doing here?”

“Well, Error’s an AU jumper like us. I figure we’d need to look around.” He motioned to the vast portals lining the world around them. “So long as there’s a liquid somewhere, I can see into the AUs, we can look for him!”

“But you can’t see into the anti-void,” Jewel countered. “That’s where he’d be most of the time,” she said, teleporting quickly.

“Jewel!” Ink tried to call out. That was the one place he couldn’t follow, he didn’t know how to get there. “I can’t very well protect you if you’re not with me,” he pouted.

He nearly jumped when Jewel came back so quickly, teleporting close to him. “Well, he’s definitely not in the anti-void. It’s pretty empty in there… some of the souls he collected are gone too. Maybe he’s looking for them?”

“Souls?” Ink rose a brow.

“Oh, yeah. From all the humans in the AUs… to keep them from resetting. Are there any that have popped back up? If Error didn’t completely destroy it, there’s a chance that they could come back.”

“If he went that far, I doubt he’d leave the job half-finished,” Ink commented, but still went to look. He hadn’t noticed anything in particular, not right off, but that didn’t mean anything…

As Ink continued to look through the massive amount of paint blotches that were his windows into the AUs, Jewel had tried, but she realized this was getting nowhere. She opened up a window and started typing into the code. Ink, hearing the beeping from the screen, looked back, confused.

“What are you doing?”

“The same thing you are, only more direct. I know Error’s code, having spent so much time with him, going to use the code to search the multiverse for him, anything within ten minutes of the search starting.”

“But there are so many worlds to check, it’ll take it hours.”

“So will your method,” she sighed as she started the search. She put a hand over her chest.

Ink stared at her, realizing… “You really care about him,” he said softly.

“You’re just realizing this?” she half laughed. “I just lashed out at Sans for this very reason, scared you,” she rubbed her arm a little.

“You didn’t…” Ink started but stopped. He could try and lie but what was the point? “It’s just… awkward when my friends fight like that. I rather talk things out,” he admitted softly. “That’s why I…”

“Ink, you don’t have to explain it to me. I get it. You think I like yelling at any of you? I shouldn’t even…” She pulled back a little, looking away.

“Shouldn’t… what?” Ink asked, going over to her.

“Ink, please don’t…”

“No, Jewel. I agree with Classic on one thing. You shouldn’t be keeping things from us, we’re your friends! We’re supposed to help you through your problems, not add to them! But if you keep hiding things, it makes us… it’s like you don’t trust us, that you don’t care that what you do affects us. You think I don’t realize you’re hiding everything?” he then asked her. “I might not have a soul to feel with but I’m not completely heartless, ya know!”

Jewel stared at him a little, her eyes locked with his. “You… don’t have a soul?”

Ink paled and flushed a little, pulling back a bit. “Y-you didn’t know??”

“Why would I know that? Though it certainly explains why I can’t get a read on you…”

“I-I thought… Error would have told you… at least in passing…” he said softly, unable to look at her as his eyes fixated on the ground, his hand clutching at his vials. “Or the creators…”

She sighed a little. “Ink, get over the whole creator bit, please,” she rubbed her brow but she walked over to him, gently putting a hand on his shoulder. “But… Ink, I… I’m sorry…”

“I-it’s fine, I’m used to not having a soul,” he said, faking a smile, though he still didn’t look at her.

“No, Ink,” she said softly, caressing his cheek. “I’m sorry you felt like that. I… I’m sorry I can’t be the friend you want. I… I’ve been hiding for a long time… because none of you would like what I really am. Even Error… I’m not this perfect person, and I never pretend to be. But you especially… you put me up on this pedestal, call me a creator, a protector… I’m none of those things, Ink… Far from it.”

Ink turned back to her, staring at her as she spoke. “You think any of us are perfect? I can’t remember anything, I get distracted, jump from one thing to another. Sans is lazy, and apparently he gets attached really easily. So you make a couple of bad decisions-“

“Ink,” she cut him off, causing him to stare at her with confusion in his eyes. “Don’t… please… I can’t stop with Error, but I can still back off with all of you. I don’t want you to get hurt, so please, just let me go…”

“We can take care of ourselves, Jewel! Sans, Red, even Error and me! You don’t have to keep worrying about us! We know what we’re doing.”

“No, you don’t… because I can’t tell you,” she sighed a little. “Though,” she looked to him, smiling just slightly, “It’s interesting to see a skeleton with no soul make emotional decisions.”

Ink blinked a little. “Emotional… me? That’s a good one!” he laughed a bit.

“No, seriously, Ink.”

“Jewel, I don’t have a _soul_! I can’t feel! I drink these vials so I can _pretend_ to have emotion! I’m faking it!” he exclaimed, his eyes sinking a little. He hated admitting this to people. “You should know! You’re an empath, right? That’s why Nightmare’s after you! Are you telling me you can’t tell the difference between fake emotions and genuine ones?”

She stared at him for a good, long moment, before placing her hand on his chest, where his soul would be. Ink’s face flushed a little as he stared back into her eyes. She had this serious expression plastered on, and it weirded him out a little. He awkwardly stood there with her hand on his chest. He wasn’t freaked out by physical contact but this was strange to say the least!

“I think you’re the one who has trouble discerning the difference,” she said after a moment. “You focus so much on the negative part of your condition that you fail to realize… you are genuinely feeling. Yes, you need help, but it’s no different than someone with depression who is overwhelmed by negative feelings and needs to take medication to help balance themselves out. I’ll admit, it’s muted, and you don’t have a soul to broadcast or receive. I can’t get a good read on you based on the emotion alone. But Ink, you _do_ feel. If taking the vials helps you do so, then fine, but you aren’t emotionless.”

He wanted to argue. Obviously, he knew more about his condition than she did, right? But she was also an empath, could read emotions when he couldn’t. A couple of tears formed in his eyes, though out of frustration or relief, he didn’t know. Then he felt her hug him. Her arms wrapped around his smaller frame and he just… felt. He felt safe. He felt warm. He felt relief… he felt love. She did care… He wrapped his arms around her, holding her tightly.

“Jewel, I…,” he said softly. “You really do care, don’t you?”

“Of course I do, numbskull,” she smiled a little as she continued to hold him. “Just because I’m not open about stuff, you really think I don’t? I’ve been alone for so long, Ink… I’m terrified of what you all will say when you learn the truth about me… about everything… and there’s nothing that can be done about any of it because it’s in the past, no way to fix any of it.”

“The way you say it makes it seem like you don’t trust us,” he said softly as he pulled back. “You’ve shared more with Red and Error than me or Classic, I’m guessing. You admitted something about your brother to Red and his brother.”

“I had to tell them to prove a point. But I didn’t tell them much. Just that… I lost my brother. Which, to be fair, I insinuated pretty heavily with you and Sans when I woke up.”

“I suppose. I mean, I caught it, and that’s saying something,” Ink chuckled a little, looking up at her.

“I haven’t really told anyone too much… I mean… I’ve had to explain my healing to Error, why one wound heals and another doesn’t, but I did that for you guys too. You’re all pretty much on the same page at this point.”

“With nothing, huh?” Ink sighed. “I wish you’d trust us… at least me,” he said softly. “Not like I’ll remember half of it, but come on, talking it out helps.”

“Talking won’t help, not with what I have. But… thank you for the offer.”

“Jewel, come on, please?? I want to help you too! I can make you anything you want!”

“Ink, this isn’t a transactional thing. You can’t just win me over with presents.”

“But didn’t Error?”

“No. Error offered me a puppet to be my friend because he thought he couldn’t. I told him I wanted him to be my friend. He didn’t give me the puppet until after something else happened.”

“Like what?”

“Like… an emotional breakdown,” she said softly. “For both of us. It all happened at once, there was a lot… There was a lot of talking, and Error made it because he thought I deserved better than him, not to win me over. We were already friends, shared a lot, laughed a lot… It was his way to give me physical contact when he can’t handle it.”

“Physical contact? Like, what, just this?” he motioned to the fact they were still close, kind of hugging just pulled back.

She chuckled softly. “Yes, Ink. Like this. This is actually the one thing you can do that he can’t. And I appreciate your willingness to just let me hug you.”

“That… seems like a weird want. Everyone touches one another somehow, right? Handshakes, shoulder pats,” Ink tilted his head. “Why are you craving that? I mean, I know now Error won’t do it, but… come on, there as so many other people in the multiverse! Red’s touched you, so have Sans and me!”

Jewel sighed a little and moved back over to the window she opened up, checking the list as it searched before sitting on the ground. “It happens when you’re isolated for so long.”

“What do you mean?” Ink blinked.

“Remember when I said I don’t have a base to go back to?” she asked him, looking up at him. “The reason I needed you for when we reset with Sans.”

He thought a minute, having to dig it back up. “Yeah, I think so. I remember doing it more so,” he admitted sheepishly. “I was excited because I got to show you the Doodlesphere, but you didn’t stay long.”

“Well, no, I was kind of hurt,” she chuckled softly. “But it goes back to that,” she told him. “I don’t… exist as far as the worlds are concerned. I’m an abnormality, more than what Error considers AUs to be. I have a code, don’t get me wrong, I can show it to you. But it’s not assigned to anything. I’m literally garbage data and just kind of… float around. I’m not restricted to anything, I can exist in the code because to it, that’s all I am. I’m not assigned anywhere, my data won’t corrupt if I’m outside of it.”

“That sounds more useful than you make it out to be. I mean, you’re like me and Error!”

“Well, yeah, you’re right, but you two have assigned bases. You have here, and Error has his part of the anti-void. I don’t have… anything. I mean, there is this part of the code I made where it’s… kind of hidden away so no one can accidentally go through, but I’m not assigned to it.”

“But what does that have to do with you craving contact?”

“Because I was trapped in the code for a long, long time,” she admitted, her voice quiet.

Ink blinked, looking a little more sincere and compassionate. “What?”

“I… I did some bad things… instead of facing it, I ran away. I don’t know _how_ , but… I managed to break out of my world and into the code. And because I was there, and didn’t know what I did… I was just… lost. There was nothing… black… in areas directly outside of a world, the code is contained and not visible. I was lost in a void of blackness. I wandered and just… there was nothing, Ink. Absolutely nothing! And time doesn’t pass in the code… like in the anti-void and here… you’re just… stuck.”

Ink started having flashbacks to when he first arrived in the Doodlesphere. Alone, white, nothing… it seemed like her experience wasn’t that far off from his own. But while he had creators drip color into his world, and allowed him to create… “How… how did you escape? I… creators gave me my life. I started off with nothing… I couldn’t feel, there was nothing here… but then yellow… nothing but yellow, pure joy… came into my world. I eventually discovered my powers, but…”

“I don’t know how long it took… I was left alone for so long in that space… eventually I stumbled upon some code… I suck at it, honestly, reading it hurts my head… but I learned as there was nothing else to do. I figured out patterns, what things did… probably took me ages, bet Classic could figure it out a lot faster…”

“You’re not Classic, Jewel,” Ink told her, putting a hand on her shoulder.

Jewel put a hand over his, just focusing on the ground. “I… I managed to figure things out. The first thing I realized was that the AUs existed. I accidentally pulled one up. It was like… watching a TV show. The very first AU I ever found was not a happy one, it made me uneasy, but at the same time I felt drawn because… because of what I had been through. It was the first thing I… I had in… God knows how long. But still, it was just a window. I couldn’t interact, I couldn’t do… anything. The AU didn’t last, eventually being abandoned. It killed me a little, there was no resolution, nothing… just like my life. There was nothing left, just this… void.”

Ink slowly sat down beside her, his hand never moving as he let her squeeze it.

“I… I don’t know… eventually I figured out some of my powers. I didn’t need to eat or anything but I got tired of doing nothing but sitting on what seemed to be a floor but it also made it look like I was floating… the first thing I realized was I could summon my crystals… sooner or later the rest of my powers started to manifest… I think from being in the code for so long… They didn’t really fit with my abilities before, but who was I to argue. I think my desire to get out started manifesting… something like Determination in the rest of the humans… I don’t have the levels these kids have, far from it. I mean, after all, I’ve never really wanted anything bad enough to be considered determined. But I was determined enough to try and change… I persevered through this with patience… Pretty much how I lived my whole life, even before this point. I managed to find my world again, but… so much time had passed. Everything I did… it was now a legend, a warning… but no one knew who I was. My old home was gone, everything was just… gone… I wandered around, my only friend at the time was this stray cat who followed me. I’d steal food for us both when I didn’t have money. I hid everything about me… but somehow I was found out. Apparently, using your powers for good reasons is still evil,” she sighed, rubbing her arm. “I ran back into the code and got lost in there again. I didn’t bother to leave at that point… my own world turned its back on me… and I turned my attention to the AUs. I started watching them, fascinated by how the same character could change with just a small part of their world having been different. It was… amazing to see how these same people could be so vastly different…”

“But you never interacted with them before,” Ink realized. “Not until…”

“Technically, I had,” she said softly. “Don’t tell Error,” she chuckled a little, somewhat hollowly. “I was watching this one AU… I can’t remember which one… it was so long ago and Error’s probably deleted it by now… The world was utterly destroyed and I just wanted to fix it… that was when I remembered how one of the Sanses was talking about timelines and I… well… since I learned about the code, I tried and isolated the world from the rest of the code. It took me too long, everyone in it was dead… one of the genocide runs and the world was erased… only the human left… I managed to figure things out, trial and error, mostly… my first time resetting the world was… weird. I had control over a world I had been watching as an outsider, I could rest something if I didn’t like it. But… that Sans was so broken after everything… the creator of the world had abandoned it, that genocide run was supposed to be the end… my bringing them back just caused them to suffer… their world started falling apart without the creators to guide and nurture it… I had made them suffer… like I do everything else… I reset the world for my own selfish reasons and made these poor monsters suffer… the kid didn’t even go through with the genocide run fully… that Sans was left without his Papyrus, slowly went insane because nothing he did… the story wouldn’t continue… the kid just… disappeared. And I abandoned it too… I couldn’t stand to see what I had done…”

Ink stared at her, a memory of when they truly first met coming back slowly. “I-I’m sorry,” Ink said softly. “If I had known, I could have given the creator more inspiration! The AU would have been fine, it—“

“No,” she said with a sigh. “Not your fault, Ink. The creator was done, didn’t want the story anymore. I reset the world in a way that wasn’t quite like starting over and re-reading it. I reset the world to a point where it couldn’t recover. The inhabitants lost the will to live… I gave them something worse than the death they had… I don’t think even your powers would have saved them… the only thing that would have would have been Error… and I don’t know if you two even existed at that point.”

“That far back…? Jewel… how long were you trapped?” he asked, carefully.

“I don’t know. No way to track time… And I can’t even use the AUs as a guide because I didn’t really discover them until… well…”

“What about your own world. Have you gone back to it? We could compare when you left to what it’s like now.”

“My world is gone, Ink,” she said softly.

His eyes grew wide. “Wh-what? Was it an AU? I don’t get it, you’re not like anything I’ve seen traveling through the AUs! That doesn’t make sense!”

“I don’t know, I really don’t. I don’t remember Mt. Ebott or anything. Maybe I was part of one that didn’t focus on the story, I don’t know…” she sighed softly. “Maybe I’m not even part of this multiverse at all, but I traveled the code and found this pocket of it… there are so many possibilities, Ink… the code connects many worlds… Like I said, no point in dwelling on it.”

Ink stared at her. He wanted to help! “Jewel… I… I don’t know what I can do… I’m sorry…”

“This is why I don’t talk about it, Ink,” she said with a soft sigh as she turned to face him. “There is nothing you can do. I’m not trapped anymore, I have control of my powers, mostly. It’s the ones I was born with that are the issue, not the ones I got from being in the code. But… either way… other than understanding me, there’s literally no point in dwelling on something that has no bearing on the future.”

“It’s hindering your friendships, Jewel,” Ink protested. “You’re not willing to let Sans take care of you as a-“

“He has no right to claim that he’s my brother, Ink!” Jewel barked back. “That’d be like if Papyrus was killed and… let’s say Swap Papyrus came in and demanded to take his place or something! I don’t know.”

“He doesn’t want to replace your brother,” Ink said softly. “He just cares about you like one. Is that wrong? To have someone care that much about you?”

“When he barely knows me, yes.”

“Then get to know him!” Ink countered. “You need to talk to him about this!”

“He won’t let me, Ink! I can’t get a word in because he wants to be in control! How much you want to bet I’m older than him anyway? He can’t be my big brother.”

“But he can be _a_ brother,” Ink carefully told her, putting a hand on her shoulder. “You said you don’t have anyone. I’ll talk to Sans, maybe we can get him to calm down so you two can talk it out… will you at least try? For me?” He gave her some big, shiny eyes.

She sighed, heavily. “You’re hanging around Blueberry too much,” she muttered a little. “But fine, if he stops being so judgmental.”

Ink’s eyes turned to stars and he hugged her. “See? Talking can be good!”

Jewel blinked, looking at him and then chuckled a little, hugging him back. “I never said otherwise, Ink. It’s just, for my problems, it’s not necessary. I… really don’t want a brother again. I can’t take it.”

Ink looked up at her, still hugging her as they sat on the ground.

“It’s hard enough… right now,” she said softly, closing her eyes, leaning into him a little. “I don’t like fighting with Sans… I don’t like upsetting you… I can’t stand to see the pain in Red or Error’s eyes… especially when I know I’m at the root of it. Or I will be…”

“Jewel, you don’t know the future. No one does. You can’t know what’s going to happen.”

“We know what happens during the various runs in the AUs. The pattern is there.”

“So? You’re not in an AU. You’re free of it. Is this all because of Nightmare?” he asked. “Has he really gotten to you? I mean, I know he’s scary, literally a thing of nightmares,” he joked lightly, “but he’s still a Sans, just like the rest of us. No more demonic than you or me. And hell, he knows to keep away from Error, you’ll be fine with him.”

“It’s not me I’m afraid for Ink. I can handle anything Nightmare throws at me. I can take anything anyone throws at me. Even if I can’t, I… really don’t care…”

“Jewel, don’t talk like that,” Ink pleaded, looking up at her.

“It’s the truth, Ink. I… I just don’t care. I literally exist. I have no reason to thrive. I just keep going on. You’ll all leave me eventually, even Error.”

“Then what about us??” Ink then asked as he pulled back, looking at her. “If you’re so convinced we’re going to leave you, why are you trying??”

“Because you wanted me to.”

Ink blinked, confused, his eyes spirals as he looked at her. “What?”

“You… wanted me to,” she said softly. “I’m going to hurt either way. I can try and keep my distance but you all…” she sighed, looking away. “When we met, and you asked me to be your friend and save AUs instead… I thought about it, I really did. Might have taken you up on it if Error didn’t literally destroy the world underneath us. I’m desperate for contact, Ink, any kind. I took Error impaling me and fighting me because it was the first contact with a person I had in literal years. At the start… yeah, Error was interesting, this whole concept of you two is just… entertaining from an outside perspective! If you had attached to me instead of Error, things would have progressed kind of the same way. I would have helped you save AUs, made an enemy out of Error, no doubt, so I… I’m glad it was him who grabbed me… because it… would have been hard to fight him. The way he feels it… I don’t know if I’d have been able to convince him to listen like I did before if he started off fighting me with you, instead of just as a random encounter, ya know? Because I… despite my rules, I still care. I don’t have to be emotionally invested, but it’s easier for me to when I… People like Error and Red… hell, even Nightmare, I can see myself in them. I can see every choice, understand literally everything that brought them to that point. I _get it!_ Because life can suck. But then I look at people like you,” she said, looking up at him, “Like Sans… the ones who get crap thrown at them and can just roll with the punches. Hell, Red and Sans are literally a what-if-this-happened scenario! Their lives are identical except for that one conjunction point! And I… I don’t know details but I _feel_ like you and Error are the same… Then, there’s me.” She closed her eyes. “I made all the wrong choices growing up. Like Red, I was taught that it was everyone for themselves. I did horrible things for the sake of me and me alone. The only one I gave a damn about was my little brother and I… my actions cost me that. They cost me my whole family. I don’t _deserve_ to have friends anymore, Ink!” she exclaimed, “All I do is hurt people! I push them away to try and protect them and they still get hurt because they come after me. I let them in and they get targeted. I’m literally a negativity magnet! Why else is Nightmare after me? And I don’t care what happens to me! I can take it! It hurts to have the people I care about hate me but I rather them be alive to do so than be hurt trying to get close!”

Ink stared as tears finally started to make their way down her face. He couldn’t think of anything to say to any of that. Nothing that could magically make this better. But she was opening up to him… that was a start… and what he wanted. Was she only doing this because he asked? Or did she… feel safe around him too?

“Jewel…” he said softly as he held her, letting her cry. “You don’t hurt people… I mean, yeah, it hurts when you push us away, but we can make our own choices, ya know? If we get hurt because of Nightmare, that’s not your fault. That’s Nightmares fault, he’d be the one to throw the punches or get his cronies to do it. And it’s not like I haven’t crossed paths with him before. I used to be buddies with his brother, Dream. I really think you should meet him too after we find Error. Maybe he can help you with Nightmare, huh? And I’m sure he’d be your friend too. You need to stop punishing yourself for things you can’t do anything about anymore. If you don’t wanna talk about your past, that’s fine, but don’t keep us out because of it either. You said you had the determination to change, which means you’re not that person anymore. We don’t know that person, we only know this one.” He pulled back and gently wiped the tears from her cheek. “And I can’t speak for everyone else, but I do like the person I know in front of me. She’s funny when she lets her guard down. Who else would have thought of a frosting fight, huh?” he grinned at her. “You managed to make two killers open up to you. Red, I get, he seems like a softy, but you managed to get Error to open up to you. That’s a feat in of itself! And it shows how much you really care about us that you’re so freaked out. A horrible person wouldn’t be worried. And despite what you say, and even if I don’t fully agree with your methods, you do care about the AUs enough to try and keep everything balanced. I rather save and nurture them all, but you at least try and keep Error’s destructive tendencies to worlds that… need him, I suppose. You are a protector, even if you can’t see it.”

Ink leaned in and hugged her again. She didn’t say anything but hugged him back, holding tightly. Maybe a little too tightly.

“H-hey,” he winced a little. “Love the fact you’re so moved and all, but I only have 1HP, Jewel…” he then whispered, “please don’t break my ribs…”

“Sorry,” she said softly as she pulled back. “I… forget sometimes how strong I am now…”

He rubbed his side a little. “Yeah, you are pretty crazy strong. But what do you mean now?”

“Well, I have something to compare it to, I suppose. Can’t really break code with my fists and all. Being around other living things is… weird…”

“And with the 1HP thing most Sanses have, I guess that does explain why you keep treating us like we’re made of glass, with the other stuff added in,” Ink said as he thought about it.

Jewel couldn’t help but chuckle. “Love how you switch gears there so quickly. Go from emotional to random in seconds.”

“Eh, kind of my thing,” Ink chuckled a little. “Uh… what were we talking about?”

“Your ribs still hurt?”

“Huh?” he blinked.

“Never mind,” she chuckled. “We should probably look for Error.”

“Oh, right, we were doing that,” he remembered, standing up and went over to continue to search his portals.

Jewel stared at him as he stood there. She wiped her face a little, taking a breath. This was wrong… she shouldn’t have broken down like that… especially not to Ink. But perhaps he was the best one if he forgot so easily… That was… too much.


	13. Chapter 13 - Recovery

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> We finally figure out what happened to Error after he ran off, and a little interaction between him and Ink that doesn't really require fighting.

# Chapter 13 - Recovery

Hours had passed as they searched for Error, at least according to the code Jewel had written. It had been running for four hours and thirty-six minutes, and counting. They weren’t having any luck traditionally looking through all the worlds through Ink’s possible portals either. Jewel was getting antsier as time went on, constantly going back to the anti-void to look to see if Error had come back. She left a note for Error to try and contact her. Go to Classic and have him call her, leaving her number on the note, or spill something so Ink knew. She worried that he’d freak out that she was with him, but she didn’t know he knew how to get the Doodlesphere… watch him know but Ink didn’t know how to get to the anti-void… that would be something he’d do.

“Jewel, you need to calm down,” Ink said after noticing her starting to border on pacing once again.

“I can’t Ink! I just… I feel like he’s in trouble!”

“You can’t know that. Well, granted, it’s Error, he’s probably off destroying an AU, I just won’t know which one until it goes dark. But he’s never really “in trouble” when he does that.” He paused, thinking, “But, if I remember right, that’s not the first time you’ve done that, is it? Feel like something was wrong. You did it when Red’s Papyrus came back.”

“That was regarding Error too, not Papyrus. Granted, that was a thing, but something was wrong with Error then too. He lost control, for whatever reason. That’s what I got caught up in three days ago.”

“How can you feel that, anyway?” Ink then asked. “I mean, it’s not like the anti-void would be close to UnderFell, or Classic’s world.”

Jewel put a hand over her chest. “I… have no idea,” she admitted softly. “I’ve just… been able to sense this kind of thing. Things that are going to go wrong, if… if people need me. It… sounds so stupid saying it aloud…”

“No, that’s kind of cool!” Ink exclaimed. “So, like if I get attacked, you’d know I need help?”

“Uh… I can’t promise that,” she said softly, looking a little nervous. “I’m not a superhero, Ink.”

“But you can feel it, yeah?” he asked. “You keep putting your hand over your soul. What, did Error leave a string on there or something?” He got closer as if he was going to check.

“..what?” she asked, looking confused… but then started really thinking about it. Could that be it? He had grabbed her soul quite a few times, pulled, she snapped it… and then she… gave him something from hers!

“I’ve got to check something, Ink!” she exclaimed, making him jump back a little. He was about to reply but she spoke too quickly, “Don’t freak out, shake me if you find something!”

“Freak out, why would I-?” he got cut off as he saw her quickly sit in a meditation pose, legs folded, hands in front of her center, but then her eyes went completely white. Just, nothing. “Holy shit!” he jumped back a little. He took a breath, looking at her. He waved a hand in front of her face, confused. But then her eyes slowly closed, and he backed up again. “Okay, that was… oh wow. Wonder what she’s doing?” He could ask her when she was done.

As Jewel sat there, physically, her mind was… well… elsewhere.

Jewel slowly stood up inside a void of pure blackness. There was nothing else there. At least, not until she snapped her fingers and a purple crystal came floating in. She hopped up on it and like a hover-pad, it took her into another area that was still black around, but it had rivers of blue and purple with crystal flowers lining the “shores” of these rivers and through the field of crystal rocks. The crystal dropped her off on a high ledge and she walked over, very carefully, to a patch of clear crystals sitting there, pristine… except for one. One that had the top of the crystal broken off and little cracks through it. She went over and gently put a hand on it.

“Back so soon?” a voice echoed from behind her.

“I had a question,” she said softly, turning. Before her was a large white wolf, practically radiating as it stood there. It was easily double her size.

“You are not alone,” the wolf stated, though a questioning inflection was in its voice. “What made you decide to forgo your usual safety measures? Are you willing to let this young skeleton know more about you?” the voice sounded hopeful from this wolf.

“I’m… not sure. But he brought up a good point… a question really and I thought…” she looked back to the crystal.

“You are referring to his question of the strange blue strings your companion uses to control his opponents?” it questioned. “He did not leave a string inside of you. We would have expelled it by now if he did, of course.”

“I know, but it made me think of something else. About… _why_ I can feel he’s in trouble.”

“Ah, you believe it is due to the fact you gave him one of your empathy crystals,” the wolf surmised. “That is possible, but it is not necessary. A strong, emotional connection is all that is needed for an empath to bridge the gap between souls. The fact you have given him one of those crystals does strengthen the bond you would have with him, however.”

“So… if I care about someone, I can feel this? Even without the crystals?”

“Yes, if the bond is strong enough. This is why you see soulmates claiming to know when the other is in trouble or the twin phenomenon. Their souls are connected much more strongly than we can understand.”

“Can I… can I use it to track him?” she then asked. “Or at least narrow the search? Ink has all these portals, is there a chance that I could use this bond… at least the crystal to…”

The wolf sat instead of stood, thinking as she spoke. “It may be possible. I, personally, have never done it but I did not have someone who could travel across dimensions as you do.”

“Can you show me?” Jewel turned back to the wolf.

The wolf stared at her. “I understand your concern for your friend. But I must warn you… you are dangerously low on white magic, Jewel. The constant healing has drained your reserves. I do not know if you can take another lethal attack. Two deadly injuries within such a short time…”

The wolf’s ears lowered slightly as did it’s head as it looked at Jewel with concerned, pale eyes. Jewel walked over and the wolf leaned down, wrapping its head around her as she wrapped her arms around it as best she could.

“I know, Angel… I’ll be careful.”

“No, you will not,” the wolf sighed as it pulled back. “You will never put your own well-being first. Not anymore… I do not know if it is admirable that you have dedicated yourself so much to this, or foolish that you refuse to see the value in your own life versus others.”

Jewel gently ran her hand over the fur on the beast’s cheek and another soft sigh escaped the wolf’s muzzle.

“Very well.”

A giant paw came down and gently guided Jewel into a sitting position very much like the one her physical body was currently in. Jewel did not hesitate to do as she was told, this position all too familiar.

“Take a deep breath and focus,” the wolf said softly, with a soothing, calm voice. “Focus on that part of your magic. Focus on him. They are one now.”

The wolf walked around and gently pressed its nose against Jewel’s soul as it started to glow as if giving a helping hand as it closed its eyes.

Ink began to panic as her soul started to glow brightly, stopping his searching. She said to shake her if he found something but this… he didn’t but now he was worried something might be wrong. Before he could attempt to shake her, however, her eyes shot open and he fell on his backside.

“Holy-!” Ink exclaimed as he fell, the impact making his train of thought stop.

“I found him!” Jewel shouted.

Ink blinked before leaning forward. “Awesome! How??”

“I’ll explain it later, we gotta go!” She grabbed Ink’s arm and teleported them to the AU.

It was less than a second, and Ink was instantly scolding Jewel for teleporting them when he could have done it too, but his voice was quickly silenced by what he saw. Error was on the ground, his hoodie and shirt torn, his arm barely hanging on with some loose string wrapped around it, his leg bones cracked. He was glitching heavily and he had several blasters around him. It was the first time Ink had seen Error in such a state. Then again… it was also the first time he had heard of or seen this AU… with giant freaking Neanderthal versions of the characters. In front of Error was the Neanderthal versions of Sans and Papyrus, which already didn’t bode well. Papyrus held a spear while Sans held a club.

“Get him out of there, I’ll distract them,” Ink quickly spoke as he took off, despite Jewel’s protests to the contrary.

Ink was successful in getting Papyrus’ attention by simply being there. Sans however wouldn’t stop focusing on Error. His blasters fired, but his aim was off as Sans was too far away and it didn’t take much for the large, hulking form that was this version of the skeleton to dodge it. Maybe he just could, as always. Sans closed the distance between them quickly and lifted his club.

“No!” Jewel quickly teleported in, a barrier rising just as the club came smashing down. Her stance faltered for a moment as the impact shook through her.

“J-Jewel?” Error’s voice rang with disbelief. For a second, everything else in the world didn’t matter. But he quickly snapped back to his senses. “What the fuck are you doing here?!” he barked at her. “Get out before you get yourself killed!”

“Take your own advice, open a portal!” she barked back as another whack with that club came down, causing her to flinch under the force as her hands held up against it. “I can’t keep this up forever!”

Error raised his right hand, wincing as he tried to force a portal open through the pain. He barely managed to get a small one open but he couldn’t sustain it. The pain was too much. He panted and held his side.

“Error?” she looked back at him, her eyes a bluish-white instead of their normal color.

The color of her eyes caught him off guard for a second as he stared into them. But he quickly recovered. It could be asked later. “Fuck, Jewel, just get out of here!”

“I’m not leaving you!” she shouted at him, but as another hit came down she was forced to one knee as the barrier shrunk in size around them.

“Damn it, Jewel! Get the fuck out of here! I’m not worth it! Stop getting hurt because of me!!”

Jewel stood back up, forcing strength she didn’t have into the barrier. She barely moved with the hit, but the top of the dome started to crack.

“I’m not leaving without my best friend!”

The caveman version of Sans outside was pissed off at the strength of this clear rock! He put extra force behind this last swing, which broke through the clear rock, watching it shatter. His club hit the small female who created the rock, sending her flying into a nearby tree. He didn’t care what happened to her, he focused on the tiny black and red skeleton before him.

Error’s eyes widened in horror as Jewel took the full force of that hit, more focused on him than sustaining the barrier protecting them. The pain that had been holding him back, the exhaustion, it was gone in that second as pure rage at this hulking mass for daring to lay a hand on her! The blasters he still had summoned entirely focused on this Sans, close enough for Error to see and fired in tandem with everything he had at that moment. The Sans fought against the blast, but eventually lost against Error’s rage-filled second wind and was thrown back. He was down, but not defeated.

Error took the seconds of reprieve, pushing himself up, pain rushing through him again, but something was driving him other than his desire for destruction. He managed to teleport, just a bit closer, using magic was hard right now, he was exhausted, but he pushed himself closer, either through shift-teleporting or by limping as he made his way over to Jewel, who hadn’t moved from the spot she was thrown into.

“Jewel!” he called out, panic starting to set in, taking the place of his rage for the moment. “Come on, you have to get up, you have to get out of here!”

She didn’t say anything, and it made Error panic. He got down to his knees, knowing he may not get back up, his broken left arm holding his ribs in place as the pain in his leg was at least waning after getting the pressure off of it. His right hand went over, shaking as he grabbed her shoulder.

“Jewel! Jewel, please!”

_Please don’t be dead…_

“Can’t… move…” he heard from her, barley, as his eyes widened, eye-lights dilating smaller as she managed to say one more thing. “Spine’s… broken… S-sorry… Er…Error…”

Error watched in horror as her eyes closed. “No! No, Jewel!” He saw a very faint glow in her chest and he shook. She couldn’t even wait… this was bad, this was very bad! His first instinct was to grab her and run. But even if he could open a portal, with her back broken, that was the worst thing he could do.

His attention was turned back to the Sans having recovered enough to get close. He hadn’t been paying attention. His blasters quickly appeared his panic and rage at this monster for hurting Jewel the only thing fueling him at this point.

That was when he heard it. A familiar voice. Not one he was normally thrilled to hear, but at that moment, it was his solution.

“INK!!”

Ink, who had been mostly dodging Papyrus’ spear attacks, countering with ink-filled bones and waves of the black substance for him to teleport around the field with, heard his name shouted with a glitching inflection. He took a split second to look back as Error sat in front of a downed Jewel. That hulking Sans kept coming back at them, and Error was having to constantly push him with his blasters.

What in the multiverse happened? A second ago he saw her with the barrier up, and now..! He quickly abandoned his fight with Papyrus and shifted through the ink closer and ran over, adding his attack in with Error’s to knock that Sans back.

“What happened?” Ink quickly exclaimed once they had a second to breathe.

“SH-shut it!” Error glitched. He hated this, so, so much, but Jewel was more important! “She broke her back, I can’t get her out with my portals!”

Ink’s face paled a little, even more so when Papyrus went over to help Sans up. These two goliaths together…

“Get her out of here, stupid ink stain!!”

Ink didn’t spare him the harsh look, even if he understood why he was snapping. Still, he didn’t hesitate further as he summoned a wave of black ink to quickly engulf them all.

The Sans and Papyrus were confused as they looked down as the black water erased their prey from them. A few grunts to one another with a smile from the Sans, and an annoyed look from the Papyrus, they headed off, leaving the giant mess of ink and strings alone. The rain would clean it…

Error coughed a little as he found himself in a completely colorful world, quickly realizing…

“The f-fuck?!!” he yelled his, body glitching a little more.

“This is the safest place for her,” Ink easily countered, his voice even. But he looked over at him as he started to glitch out a little. “Error?”

Too much, too much stuff around. It was disgusting! He had to put up with a lot when he was in AUs, but this was cluttered beyond belief.

Ink watched as Error’s glitching got worse. Jewel was right, this wasn’t fun to watch. It looked painful. But what was wrong? He started to take a few steps closer.

“Get away from ME!!” Error roared at him, causing Ink to back up.

Error’s eyes were starting to fill up with error codes. Ink saw it and started to get worried. Was he going to crash? He watched as Error tried to open a portal to the anti-void, or at least he assumed so because on the other side it was pure white, just as his world had been before the color entered it. Was that it? While Ink feared white space, did Error embrace it? Jewel said she felt like they were counterparts… maybe…

Ink took his brush off his back and started to paint. He made a set of white walls and put them around where Error was able to see. No boxes, he remembered that much from when the code collapsed around them during the reset.

Error stared as Ink suddenly started painting. Great, he was going to—but then he saw nothing but white leave his brush. He was confused and slowly started to calm down. Did Jewel say something to him, before? There was no way he figured this out on his own.

“What are you doing?” Error snappily asked.

“Trying to make this easier for you,” Ink responded, keeping his tone even, if not a little upbeat as per usual. He was trying not to agitate the extra guest in his base. “With what I’ve heard, I figured you wouldn’t leave her here with me. Besides, you look horrible! You should probably rest before you try and go anywhere.”

“You don’t know what you’re talking about,” Error snapped, defensive in his response. What had he heard? He knew part of it, Ink was there when Jewel…

Ink saw almost all the fight leave Error as he focused down on Jewel. His hand hadn’t left her shoulder, which was odd. Jewel said he didn’t like contact… That’s when his eyes drifted over Error’s broken body. He was still holding his ribs with his left arm, a darker red having stained his red shirt, and the damage done to his arm…

“Well, I do know I can fix you up,” Ink tried.

“Don’t you dare!” Error growled at him.

“Oh come on!” Ink protested. “What good is it going to do you to be stubborn?! That’s gotta hurt and you’re not going to be able to take care of Jewel like that!”

“You come anywhere near me with that brush and I’ll break it!”

“You can’t wait for Jewel to wake up, ya know! I doubt she’s going to have the energy to fix you herself!”

Error’s anger ebbed just slightly, replaced by confusion. “What are you going on about, squid?”

So he did still call him that… Ink blinked a little. “What? About Jewel’s healing powers or the fact she’s exhausted?”

Error felt his soul get heavy in his chest. He hadn’t been with her for so long… when he had she was unconscious… “I didn’t know she…” he looked back down at her.

“Well, she’s only healed Red,” Ink explained. “His brother cracked his skull open and she fixed it up in no time. But that was also before… ya know,” Ink sweated a little. “When she woke up earlier today, she was exhausted.” Ink sat down on the opposite side of Jewel, getting a look from Error. But he kept his back to the white wall that Error saw, while behind Error was the rest of his world. It was easier on him if he didn’t dwell on the white walls. “She said that going into these comas takes a lot of magic… this is the third time in less than a week…”

And it was his fault. At least two of them. Error focused on Jewel’s sleeping form, his eyes locked on her soul glowing so faintly… There was silence for some time before Error just couldn’t take it anymore.

“Why did she come for me?” he then asked Ink, his eyes never leaving her.

Ink blinked, confused as that part should have been obvious. “She cares about you.”

“But why??” he half-shouted at Ink, though his anger wasn’t directed at him. “I do nothing but hurt her! She even said so!!”

It took Ink a minute to realize… “You were at Classic’s today?”

Error’s breathing stopped for a minute as he was caught. His hand squeezed a little on Jewel’s shoulder. He focused on his hand, unable to fully comprehend that he was holding her shoulder like this. He had no fight left in him. He could bark, be loud, but he had no fight left in him. Not when he… “I needed to talk to her… After I…”

Ink’s eyes widened. “You wanted to apologize!”

It was one thing when he was alone with Jewel, but the fact Ink was calling him out on it… a blush entered his face just slightly. He didn’t have enough magic for it to show too much at least. But it didn’t change the fact…

“Doesn’t matter,” he said after a moment. “She didn’t…”

Ink watched him as his features fell, his eyes focusing so intently on her. It was in that minute, Ink decided he wasn’t about to hold back on him. Let him get mad, he didn’t care, but he wasn’t about to let this slide. His hand went toward her stomach, and in a second, Error’s hand left her shoulder, only to lean over her, protecting her with his entire body, as broken as it was.

“Don’t TOUCH HER!!” he roared at Ink.

Ink stared him down for a moment, and in a quick motion Error couldn’t match in his state, he went into her jacket pocket and quickly yanked out the Error puppet she had shown them earlier. Error tried to stop him but he was slow and he didn’t have the magic left to try and hold him back with his strings. But his eyes locked on the puppet of himself that he had made her… she still had that?

“If you think she hates you, you didn’t stay long enough,” Ink then scolded lightly. “You missed everything! Dude, she slapped Sans over you! It was kind of epic, I’ve never seen him so confused.”

“But… why?” he asked. How did Ink know about that? How much… did he miss because he got hurt?

“Because he kept putting you down. Jewel got so mad when he wouldn’t let her defend you. It wasn’t… easy to watch, honestly, but she finally got through. She kept holding this,” he said as he moved over, Error eyeing him, but let him place it under her arm to let her hold it, “Told us what you said when you gave it to her.”

A blush crept onto his face. This was embarrassing! She couldn’t just… tell people this stuff!! Then again, he never told her to keep it secret. And to defend him…

Ink saw him fall silent, that small blush lost on the oblivious skeleton. “She told us you kept pushing her away,” he said, making Error flinch a little. “But what I wanna know is what you were doing when you attacked her!”

“I didn’t mean to!” Error defended, barking at him.

“Then what the hell was that?”

Error started to growl. “Would you just SHUT UP?!!” he roared at him, but the effort caused him to double over, almost collapsing on Jewel.

Ink got worried, not only for Error, but for Jewel. They didn’t weigh a lot, but she was fragile. Who knew what else was wrong with her?

“Error,” he tried once more. “Let me help you. I can heal you. You’ve seen me do it to myself, I can do it for you too. Or I can go get Classic!”

“Shut up!” he roared at him. “I-I don’t need help!”

“Stop being stubborn!” Ink scolded.

“F-fuck off,” Error growled.

Ink started to get frustrated. “Then,” he paused a second, before looking at him, “Can I get Classic to help Jewel?” he asked him. “You know he’s got healing magic too. Maybe he can help her, take some of the burden off of her.”

He knew he was trying to corner him, hope Sans would fight him on this, wear him down while he was weak. But he couldn’t argue getting help for Jewel… but that’s when he remembered. “Sans can’t do anything for her. His healing isn’t advanced enough for this.”

“But we can try, can’t we??”

Error sighed. “Fine… but I’m not moving,” he growled.

“It’s fine, you can be watchdog all you want. I’ll be back soon.”

Error waited until Ink was gone before he looked down at Jewel. He slowly straightened himself out as his hand went to her face, gently. He glitched a bit more as he realized what he was doing. It terrified him, but what terrified him more… was the thought of losing her. “Jewel… I’m so sorry,” he whispered, his voice broken. “Please… please be all right,” he pleaded with her unconscious form, tears lining his eyes.


	14. Chapter 14 - No Bones About It

# Chapter 14 – No Bones About It

Sans was with Papyrus out in the snow, actively calibrating puzzles with him. He was a little too focused on doing what his brother wanted today, and it made the taller skeleton worried. Not that he wasn’t happy his brother was working seriously, it just wasn’t like him. However, every attempt to get Sans to open up was met with puns or other jokes, easily shutting him down.

The two skeletons’ attentions were drawn to a pile of snow, melting and rising. It was pretty obvious to Sans as he walked closer as Ink appeared, not nearly as dramatic this time.

“Ink? Where’s Jewel?”

“That’s why I’m here. I need your help,” Ink said, somewhat excitedly.

“What happened?” Sans instantly feared the worst. “What did Error do??”

“Error didn’t do anything,” Ink quickly defended, only because it was the truth. “But Jewel’s hurt. I don’t know if her magic can handle it, she’s in another coma.”

Sans’ already pale face paled further, a tint of blue showing the fear in his eyes. All ready? She just left not long ago! “Paps, I gotta-“ he started before his brother cut him off.

“No need to explain. Go, I’ll take care of things here.”

“You’re the absolute best, Pap!”

As soon as Sans ran over to him, Ink brought them back to the Doodlesphere. It was pretty obvious where she was, given the random white walls. Sans ran over but froze as he saw Error sitting there, broken and bloody, gently holding Jewel’s hand as the little plush version of the black and red skeleton sat snugly under her arm. To be fair, Jewel looked uninjured, just in that state… but Error…

“Well, you look _bone-_ tired.”

Error didn’t even snap at him, didn’t look back, nothing. It was… surreal. And frightening. He had never known Error to be this… calm. And it was a quiet calm that worried him greatly.

“What happened?” Sans asked after a long few moments of silence.

“Are you going to try and help her or not?” was Error’s flat response.

Sans stared a moment. “It would help to know what’s wrong.”

“She said her back was broken before she passed out.”

Error was giving him short answers. But it was enough. Sans knelt down next to the other skeleton, which did make him flinch a little but he couldn’t, or wouldn’t, move. As Sans’ eyes went dark, only for his left to flare with his cyan and yellow magic, he couldn’t help but glance over at Error’s injuries. He was having a hard time figuring out how to help Jewel as… well… his healing magic wasn’t that great for serious injuries like this. Besides, without access to Jewel’s soul, there was only so much he could do! He could feel the other injuries, however, at least in the bones. Spine, ribs, her hip…

“What hit her?” he asked, incredulous and dementedly curious.

“A caveman version of you,” Ink said as he came back in. “Couldn’t have been the Papyrus, I had him across the clearing.”

“A… what?” To say he was surprised an understatement.

“No magic,” Error explained, exhausted and frustrated, “Just brute strength. Found that out too late,” he muttered a little.

“Yeah, they were huge!” Ink exaggerated, trying to stand on his tiptoes and reach up higher than physically possible. “Though, I’ll admit I missed when she got hit. One second she had a barrier up that held against the attacks, then the next she’s down.”

“What else is new for an abomination?” Error practically hissed. He was still angry at it. He _would_ go back and murder that vile abomination for this… once he was better. He knew what to expect now. “They get pissed, they hit harder.”

Sans looked back down at Jewel. Another new power? Or just one she finally had to break out? He would have to make a point to ask her about her abilities outright next time they spoke… if she was willing to even be in the same room as him.

“Ink, I… I don’t even know if I can help with this. I can barely tell what the damage is,” Sans spoke up. “I learned to heal so I could protect Papyrus, I can handle minor wounds on humans but this is… insane. Her spine almost severed, I can’t do anything!”

Ink then thought. “And I can’t paint over an internal injury to heal it.”

“You can’t paint over a human at all,” Error bit back.

“What we need is a dedicated healer,” Sans interrupted.

“Let me go talk to Blueberry,” Ink spoke up. “He’s in contact with Dream more than anyone.”

Error groaned. Oh great. If Jewel heard this, she would really hate where this was going.

“Dream’s healing magic is stronger, but is it enough?” Sans questioned.

“It doesn’t hurt to try,” Ink pointed out, before going onto his sash and opening up his vials. “I’m almost out of ink. Give me a few to fill back up and I’ll head over to UnderSwap and see if Blueberry can help me track Dream down.”

Sans watched Ink walk away before turning back to Error. Again, his gaze just went down to Jewel. It was strange to see him so focused on something other than destruction. And he knew well enough what it was like to steel an expression, faking a smile or calm when inside he was twisting. Error was a version of him, after all… all of them were. The original version, all of them were him at some point…

“Ya know… I can’t do much for Jewel, but I can-“

“No,” Error cut him off.

“Your being injured doesn’t help her,” Sans countered.

“Makes you feel better though, doesn’t it?” he hissed.

“Why would I-“

“I was there earlier,” Error glared at him.

Sans eyes widened and he looked a little nervous. “What were-?”

“He was going to apologize!” Ink shouted from outside, causing them both to look back out, more than a little confused. Didn’t he leave to refill his ink?

When Sans turned back, he saw Error looking a little flustered, focusing down on Jewel again, but Sans saw the very faint tint of blue to his cheeks. So he had gone back to apologize, but didn’t because of what he said?

“If you were there… why didn’t you come in?”

Error avoided his gaze. “Apparently… I missed a good portion, according to the squid. I left after she agreed with you that I was horrible.”

Sans rubbed the back of his neck. That had been so early in the conversation… “Yeah, I might’ve… been a little too harsh,” he said softly. Error glanced back as he continued. “I thought you had done more than what you had… The fact I saw you hurt her as she fell into the snow in front of me…”

“I was trying to get her out before she got hurt,” Error defended himself. “I wasn’t… actively going after her…”

“So what the hell was that?” Sans sort of snapped. “Three bones and a blaster?”

Error’s form destabilized a little, glitching a bit more. “I… I lost control… I don’t know why… but I had… been attacking anything, nothing… when she appeared, I tried to stop… it was all I could do to open a portal and hope that…” he closed his eyes, knowing he had failed that hope.

So Jewel was right… even only a few minutes in, she knew enough about Error, recognized something out of the ordinary…

“I just… don’t want her hurt,” Sans said softly after a few minutes of silence. “You’re always destroying something and the thought of her trusting you so much…”

Sans saw Error flinch, just slightly. Not in his eyes, but in his body. He got tense and he squeezed Jewel’s hand. “You think I don’t realize that? I’ve been… I’ve been trying to push her away,” he said softly, just broken. “She’s stupid to trust me. I’m unhinged. I’m fine one second and the next I…” He wanted to hold his head but he refused to let her go.

Sans listened to him, the fight earlier that morning still fresh in his mind. It made him question a lot. The similarities between him and Error of course, but… now his similarities with Jewel. Error was pushing her away, yet she still went after him. Jewel kept trying to push them out but he was stubborn too. She put down a line and he was willing to cross it… her hypocritical nature was very much like his own. He kept everything from Papyrus, from the others… but when they kept secrets from him because he thought he could help them… that he could help Jewel… How much did he really know about her? He called her a friend after she helped him once. Then again, he did the same with Ink… befriended Frisk pretty quickly in a pacifist run only to have the kid come about possessed.

Ink was about to leave. He had passed by again after filling his vials once again, having refilled his own supply when he heard them. He could have left it at that. She didn’t ask him to keep it a secret, but he felt like she wouldn’t appreciate him telling them. Still… something in him felt it wasn’t fair.

“She doesn’t care about that,” Ink finally spoke up, unable to contain himself. He didn’t know what was going on in him right now but it was something he strongly… felt.

“Ink?” Sans questioned, only to have Error’s louder outburst drown it out.

“The hell are you going on about, ink stain?”

Ink hesitated for just a moment. Was he really going to do this? It wasn’t fair that they didn’t know. “We were looking for you for hours, Error. Do you know how frantic she was? She kept going into these near-panic states as the minutes ticked by.”

Guilt seeped into Error’s soul as he looked back down at Jewel’s unconscious form.

“I don’t know what you’re afraid of, Error, but she’s never going to leave your side. Her whole stupid rule about making friends, it doesn’t apply to you.”

Error held a slightly confused expression as he glanced back. “What rule?”

Ink just stared at him. He didn’t even know? Oh, this was rich! “That she doesn’t do them!” Ink shouted at him.

“Oh that,” Error said nonchalantly.

Ink stared at him, unbelievingly. “Dude, you’re unbelievable! Sans and I have done nothing but try and get her to open up and ya know what she tells me? That she can still back off from us, but it’s too late for you. Do you get it yet? I don’t know how the hell she managed to find you but I’m damn certain it had something to do with her soul! It was glowing brighter than any I’ve seen, and that’s saying something because you still couldn’t see anything but the damn glow!”

Error listened intently. Her soul? Of course he wanted to know how she found him but…

Sans, however, was a little broken by the news. “She… doesn’t want us around?”

Ink stopped, looking at Sans. He sighed. “She’s got it in her head that she has to keep us at arm’s length to protect us,” he explained, even Error looking back at him for this. “It’s… I don’t know, I think it’s stupid, but she’s certain she’s only going to hurt us, one way or another. This whole thing with Nightmare has her on edge. She doesn’t care what happens to her, she’s worried about us getting hurt, and she’s certain she’s going to be the reason for it.”

“Nightmare hasn’t even made a move yet,” Sans pointed out quizzically.

“Yeah, I know. But she’s… well, she called herself a “negativity magnet.” Apparently there’s this pattern she’s seeing in how things are playing out. She said she rather us be alive to hate her than risk anything.”

Sans could understand that logic more than he liked to admit. He did a lot of things to protect Papyrus. “What else did she say?” he asked tentatively.

Ink looked a little uncomfortable. “I don’t know, Sans… it’s not really my place to say… this stuff kind of involved us but that?”

“You’ve already broken her confidence, squid,” Error glared at him. “She’s already going to get mad at you for it.”

“I couldn’t just sit here and listen to you two bicker about this! She cares about all of us, she’s just…” he sighed before looking at Error with narrowed eyes. “You’re lucky, you know that, glitchy?” he spoke, a hint of jealousy in his voice. “You’re the first one she got to know. She was so desperate for someone after…” he almost spilled the beans there. “She’s really attached to you, to the point she could just “feel it” when you were in trouble. She felt it before when we were in UnderFell when you had your episode that caused her second coma three days ago. She felt it while we were looking for you. Do you get it, Error? Do you get how lucky you are? I want to be able to be that close to her too! I… I _feel_ when I’m around her. I don’t know if it’s her empathy magic, but I… I don’t even feel like this when I’m around Dream when he puts out his aura.”

Error and Sans glanced back at one another before looking back at him. Error, however, got a bit defensive. “So, what, she’s your fix?” he growled at him. “Is that the only reason you even care about her?”

“What? No!” Ink defended.

“Really? Because right now you sound no different from Nightmare,” Error bit back.

“That’s enough,” Sans scolded. He always had to be the big brother, even with other versions of himself. “None of this is helping anyone, let alone Jewel.” He had to bring them back down. “Ink, please… go find Dream.”

Ink was silently glaring at Error but agreed with Sans. He went to UnderSwap’s portal and disappeared.

Sans sighed a little, focusing his magic on Jewel, doing what little he could for her. He was determined to try, especially if Error wasn’t willing to let him try and heal him. That’s when he noticed the faint crack in his skull.

“They really did a number on you, huh?”

Error was confused for a moment, following his eyes and his right hand, the only one he could use, did leave Jewel finally as he felt the crack on his skull once more. “This is older,” he said, avoiding eye contact.

“How much older?”

Error was silent, looking back down at Jewel again.

Sans watched his expression. “Three days, huh?”

Error tensed a little.

“Jewel isn’t going to like to hear that,” he reminded him. “She’s going to freak, and you know the first thing she’s going to try to do is heal you. She was exhausted enough when she woke up earlier today, I doubt she’s going to be in any shape to try and use magic at all, but you know she’ll still force it. Do you really want her to do that?”

Error was silent, his mind fighting with itself. “No,” he admitted after a long minute. “But right now, you’re the only one who can help her. She’s more important.”

Sans’ eye sockets widened a little as the tone in Error’s voice was surprisingly sincere. He wasn’t trying to get out of it. Well, he probably was, but he intended to help her. He then let out a soft sigh. “Well, I can’t argue that. I can’t do much but I suppose I can focus on helping some broken bones so she doesn’t have to, let her magic work on the serious stuff. But…” he turned back to Error. “You should at least get some sleep, pal. Your magic levels are dangerously low. You won’t be able to recover like you are now.”

Error knew that was the case. But he couldn’t bring himself to. There was too much going on. Ink was there.

Then he saw Sans move, going to the opposite side of Jewel, her back to him. Error had a confused look on his face.

“I need to focus on the injury site,” he said with his half-lidded gaze and lazy smile. “Pretty sure she’s getting cold though, why don’t you get closer to her?”

Error’s face erupted in a blush and he started to glitch out a little. “Th-the fuck??”

“C’mon, man,” Sans chuckled lazily. “You can’t stand contact. Haphephobia, right? It’s why you made her the plush,” he motioned down to the little plush under her arm. “But you’re all over her. Listen,” he said, sighing a little. “I know what I said earlier today. But I didn’t realize how much she cares about you… or how much you care about her,” he said, looking over at Error. “I’ve known you for a while, and I’ve always tried to stay on neutral terms with you. I don’t approve of what you do, but I know when not to make an enemy. Besides, you’re not that bad when you’re not on a rampage or in a mood. You like a good joke, and heh, that Undernovela stuff was pretty fun to watch with ya.”

Error stared at him, utterly confused.

“I still don’t like it,” Sans continued, “But she’s barely let me in. I don’t really have the right to interfere in her life or her choices. I can only offer her advice as a friend and it’s up to her if she wants to take it. You obviously care about her, so I can back off. I don’t think I’ve seen you this sincere about anything, even in your hatred of the AUs. Besides, you seem to be able to touch her right now,” he said with a small grin, “I just thought that you’d like to take the opportunity, while your fear’s gone,” he said, motioning to the empty space next to her.

His fear wasn’t gone, that was the problem. He started glitching more at the prospect of what Sans was suggesting. He had slept near her before, in the recliners, hell there weren’t any walls in the anti-void unless Jewel made one with the crystals. They always technically slept in the same room. But to be this close to her, not in his home?

But he was exhausted. He didn’t want to leave her side. Especially not here. Not with Ink so close… especially after that little outburst of his. Slowly, he lowered himself to the ground in front of Jewel. He looked up at her sleeping face. He had no choice but to lay on his right side. His ribs protested a little but with his arm barely hanging on, and a good portion of his ribs being broken from the back, he could very well lay on his back or his left side… and sleeping on his stomach right now did not sound appealing. No, he wanted to look at her. He had to make sure she was all right. That she was breathing… It was all he could focus on. He used his right arm as a pillow of sorts, keeping his head up a little and he forced his left arm to move just slightly. He couldn’t hold onto his ribs like this, and more than that… he wanted to hold her hand. He gently took it, glitching out more.

“Error?” Sans asked a little worriedly.

“I-I-I’m f-fine,” his voice glitching more as he laid there..

Okay, maybe he wasn’t as good with contact as he thought at the moment. But the fact he was actively trying to reach her in his own way was… well, it warmed his soul. Error was uniquely vulnerable right now. Sans was sure he realized it. But either he didn’t care… or Jewel was just that important to him. He had been pushing her away to protect her… and yet here he was, laying down beside her holding her hand, despite his haphephobia.

“Try and get some sleep,” Sans then said softly, falling into his big brother role. Error might not want to listen, but damn if he wasn’t going to fret now. He was in bad shape… he wouldn’t force him to get help like he would Jewel, especially given his phobia, but the least he could do was get him to take care of himself.

“I’ll keep an eye socket out, okay?” Sans offered. “I’ll make sure Ink doesn’t bother ya.”

Error didn’t know what he was feeling. This was all so strange. Sans was never this… friendly with him before. He knew things were tense, but Sans was putting in a weird effort… But he felt his body giving in to slumber. He took one last look up at Jewel before he closed his eyes. As he fell asleep, his body would calm down, the glitching going back to his normal state.

Sans let out a soft breath as he watched the black skeleton finally pass out. Error had a lot of magic, how did it get that low? One fight alone couldn’t have done it, even if he had gotten that beaten up… when was the last time he slept? His sockets had fallen deeper than he thought a skeleton’s could.

Despite the fact he couldn’t tell time, Sans knew it had been a while when Ink finally returned. He looked to be in a better mood than he left, though upon looking down at Error, his face contorted into a frown.

“Hey, give the guy a break, he’s been through hell,” Sans said softly.

“Since when did you switch sides?”

Sans shrugged. “Eh, I’ve always been a neutral party, Ink. I’m just more likely to help you save AUs, you know that.”

Ink rolled his eyes.

“So, how’d it go?”

“Blueberry hasn’t seen him in a while. He’s going to try and get his attention and call me when he comes by again.”

“You can’t look for him on your own?”

“I mean, I can, but it’d take a while,” he motioned to the portals. “I have to manually look. And unlike this knucklehead, Dream’s not going to be breaking anything unless something serious goes down.” Ink sighed a little, though he couldn’t stop looking at Error.

“How long as he been out?”

“A while,” Sans shrugged. “Finally got him to think about himself for a moment.”

Sans blinked when Ink turned around, only to stare in confusion when he came back with a standard paintbrush in his hand. “What are you doing?”

“He’s going to wake up if I use Broomie.”

“You’re not serious, are you?” Sans deadpanned. “You know he’ll kill you when he finds out.”

“If he’s got enough strength left. I really don’t care, you know what will happen if Jewel wakes up and he’s hurt.”

“Well, yeah, we already talked about it. If ya give me time, I can heal him up too, he was warming to the idea.”

“But I can’t help her, only you can right now,” Ink protested, a feeling of uselessness in his voice.

Sans realized what this was about. Ink wanted to help. He let out a long sigh. “Well, you’re a grown skeleton, I can’t tell you what to do.” He was a lot more laid back with these boys than he was with Jewel, he realized… maybe it was because she was female… he had never had a sister before. He also knew what Ink was capable of. Jewel… didn’t let in she had all these powers. How the hell was he supposed to be okay with her doing crazy things like this being left in the dark?

Sans watched as Ink carefully took his spot next to Error. He focused on his arm first, as it was the most obvious and easily accessible. Ink had to carefully remove the strings and be very, very delicate to not touch him too much. Though as he worked, he realized Error was almost as unconscious as Jewel was right now. He was able to move him, though he didn’t push his luck too much. He moved him just enough to get to his ribs and his broken leg.

“Don’t forget his skull and knuckles,” Sans spoke up.

Ink blinked, looking down at Error’s hands, noticing the micro-fractures in some of his knuckles, and the crack in his head.

“When did that happen?” Ink questioned.

“Three days ago,” Sans shrugged.

“How do you know?”

“Well, between the healing, the fact he hasn’t slept and the guilt on his face…” Sans let out a soft chuckle. “Remember, he’s got a temper. I think he was harder on himself than I was,” he said softly.

Ink looked down at him before taking care of the smaller injuries. He sighed a little as he sat back down, sitting near Jewel’s head. He gently stroked her hair.

“So… what is your end game with her, Ink?” Sans spoke up.

“Not you too…” he muttered.

“Well, you did just lay out a pretty intense motive there, bud.”

“I know, I just…” he sighed. “I can feel… sort of… with my paints. I take all of them to let them run their course through the day, giving me the right stimuli to react to what’s going on. But when I’m with Jewel… I don’t know, I didn’t realize it before. When we first met in UnderSwap, I didn’t really get a chance to talk with her. She said she was going to reset the world, she had this quizzical tone to her, and I didn’t feel anything then… then again, she was still hidden behind a partial screen…”

“A screen?”

“Yeah, it was opaque. I don’t know what happened, the world just turned white and she was there… I think I was more freaked out by the white and didn’t notice…”

“So when did you start noticing?”

“Today, I think,” he rubbed his arm. “I don’t even know if I’m right. She just… she hugged me and I… it just took over, ya know?”

Sans rose a brow. “I think you might be reading a little too much into that, Ink.”

“No it…” he sighed. “She touched…” he put a hand where she had, where his soul would be, “I accused her of not being able to tell the difference between fake emotions and real ones. It felt… weird… I don’t know, to have her hand so close to where I should be, ya know? But she told me that I’m not emotionless, that the paints only amplify what I feel naturally… but how can I feel without a soul? I wanted to argue with her, but she hugged me instead. And in that moment… I don’t know… I just… felt… warm, safe… relief… that she cared… I could feel that she really did care…”

Sans stared as tears formed in Ink’s eyes. That was a new one.

“Ink…” he called out softly, “Don’t take this the wrong way, bud… but out of your friends… how many do you actually… care about?”

Ink’s head snapped up and he looked over. “What are you talking about?” he got a little defensive.

“I mean… you push for friendship with everyone. It’s fine, I’m not arguing. I’d rather have friends than enemies too. But do you… if something happened to them… would you react?”

“Well, yeah! I got upset with Error for grabbing Blueberry!”

“Just upset?”

Ink blinked, tilting his head. “Isn’t… that right?”

Sans sighed a little. “Kinda wish Jewel was here to help back me up if empathy magic really is her thing, she might be able to explain this better... Emotions are different for everyone. Upset I suppose is one way… but… well, you’re a different version of me. I don’t expect us to react the same,” he started, “but when the genocide runs hit… when I watch the kid go after my friends… it’s… it’s like it burns… pain, anger, rage, grief… it all swells like a fire inside. It’s only more intense the closer you are…” He looked back up at Ink, having his gaze focused on the ground a moment ago. “But when… like this whole thing with Jewel… that kind of worry… it’s… this overwhelming feeling to keep her safe. I don’t know why I have it… it’s just like… I want to protect her from something, but I don’t know what…”

Ink stared at Sans. While he was giving him good insight… what he was trying to say got lost. Instead, he focused on the one thing he could understand.

“That’s your inner judge,” Ink joked lightly.

“What do you mean?” Sans rose a brow.

“She’s had a rough life…”

“How do you know?”

“She told me… a little. Like, barely any real details, just a basic rundown…” He paused a moment, sighing. “I don’t think she’d want me telling you this. She got really vulnerable and kind of broke down… but I’m hoping she’ll talk to you about it.”

“About what, Ink?”

“I… I really shouldn’t say…”

“You’re the one who brought it up.” Now his interest was piqued, damn it.

Ink sighed. Damn it, he did. “She’s lost everything, Sans,” he said softly.

Sans rose a brow. “What do you mean?”

“I mean, literally, everything. Her world’s gone.”

Sans’ eyes widened. “Error?”

“No,” he sighed. “She doesn’t think we existed at that point.”

Sans brow furrowed in confusion. “What do you mean?”

“I mean…” he sighed. “I don’t even know. You’d have to ask her. It was just this jumbled mess of an emotional breakdown. I just know it hurt her to talk about, so I faked forgetting about the whole conversation.”

“If she’ll ever talk to me again,” Sans sighed.

Ink tilted his head at him. “She wants to,” which made Sans snap his head up. “You just have to shut up and actually listen for once.”

“Heh, is that all?” He looked down at her. “I suppose I owe her that much after everything I’ve put her through…”


	15. Stains and Pixels

# Chapter 15 – Stains and Pixels

Error felt consciousness pull at his skull, though he almost didn’t want it to. He was content for once, his sleep wasn’t riddled with images he wanted to forget. He slowly opened his eyes to see Jewel still unconscious. He couldn’t help but stare at her sleeping form, memories slowly flooding back. He didn’t want to move… he was comfortable and he didn’t want to… feel… pain?

Error shot up, looking down at his ribs and noticing there was nothing. His arm was still kind of numb, but as he glanced over he noticed the break was healed. His leg, his head, even his knuckles… all of it. He glanced over and saw Classic wasn’t there anymore, he and Jewel were alone. Did he do something? But that was when he noticed a little bit of black ink on his red shirt. It was a small drop…

“INK!” Error growled as he shot up, leaving the white-walled sanctuary to go after the painter.

To his dismay, Error found himself alone. Ink was nowhere to be seen. Neither was Classic. They left Jewel alone? He wasn’t in any shape to care for her! He felt his magic flare up and winced. Okay, definitely not strong enough for that… With a bit of a sigh, realizing he was alone, he went back to Jewel. He could take his anger out on the ink stain when he got back. It wouldn’t hurt to build up a little more magic so he could string him up. He gave him lots of points to puppet him in this place after all. He had told them both no! They had some nerve! Classic was supposed to keep Ink away!

But he noticed Jewel was a little less pale than when he went to sleep. How long had Classic been healing her, despite not being able to do much? Did he tire himself out? He wouldn’t put it past Ink to try once Classic was exhausted.

Error sat down, close to her without touching her. He remembered previously, he had been so terrified of losing her that he… his panic overrode his fear, temporarily. He wanted to touch her now, but the thought absolutely terrified him. He had held her hand, he had touched her shoulder… he wanted… to do it again. But every time he tried to move his hand to hover over hers, he started shaking and glitching. It was soul-crushing. The one thing he wanted to do that he couldn’t…

Ink let out an exasperated sigh as he came back into the Doodlesphere. Another dead end. Damn, Dream was proving hard to find. Yeah, they weren’t on the best of terms, but the dude couldn’t hate anyone. Was he purposely dodging him? He hoped he would return to UnderSwap soon… He was leaving word with all the AUs he frequented, Haventale was one he knew about. They knew of him well and he hoped someone would contact him soon. Sans had over-exerted himself. Weird saying that with how lazy he was. But he really did put in the effort… Maybe he should let Red in on this. He was another version of Sans, maybe he had healing powers? It wouldn’t hurt to ask…

He blinked as he passed by the little white corner he had made for Error, noticing that he was sitting up. So he was finally awake, huh? He started strolling over, prepared for the consequences of doing so. No doubt he noticed what he was missing when he woke up.

Error heard the grass crinkle under bony footsteps. He didn’t move, waiting. Just a little closer…

Ink yelped as he stepped within a snare trap, blue strings grabbing him, pulling him upside down before more appeared to bind his arms, his other leg, wrap around him and completely ensnaring him. He blinked, a little dizzy from the sudden change in orientation to the rest of the world. The first thing he noticed were the black slippers coming toward him.

“Good to see you’re still as friendly as ever, Error,” Ink sarcastically commented. “In my place of all things, really?”

“Turnabout is fair play,” Error spoke venomously. “I told you if you touched me with that damn brush I’d break it.”

“Well, I didn’t touch you with Broomie, so ha!” he cockily replied.

“You STILL TOUCHED ME!!” he roared at him.

“Dude, knock it off. You were hurt, I don’t see the issue. You didn’t notice when I did it, now you’re better, and now Jewel won’t have to worry.”

His words only seemed to anger Error, and it took him a minute to realize it. He saw his teeth-gritting, his glitching getting more intense. It was then he realized he probably really did cross a line…

“But now you can take care of her better, right?” he tried. “You don’t have to worry about your own injuries, you can focus on Jewel.”

“And what the fuck am I supposed to do about her right now??” Error then shouted at him, making Ink flinch. He hadn’t expected that. “I’m fucking useless right now! I don’t have healing magic! I can’t even attempt to learn because of,” he held his hands up, motioning to how badly he was glitching, “this!”

Ink then blinked. “Wait, you’ve tried to learn healing magic before?”

Error tensed. “I-I just wanted to see if would be beneficial to me.”

Ink rose a brow. “Come on, Error. Everyone knows you can’t learn healing magic to help yourself.”

“Jewel did,” he muttered, dodging the question.

“Yeah, but she’s weird!”

“Says the skeleton who drinks paint,” Error jibbed.

“That’s the pot calling the kettle black!” Ink then laughed. “You literally run like an old computer and can pull strings from your eyes! How is that not weird?”

“At least I’m more normal than you!” Error bit back. “You don’t have the right to call Jewel weird!”

“But she _is_ weird, Error! Look at the situation we’re in right now! She doesn’t follow any of the rules of the multiverse!”

“Neither do we! You literally exist without a soul and my form can’t stabilize! She just has weird magic, but she’s human, who knows that might be normal for her world!”

“Well, we’ll never get to know.”

“What do you mean?” Error glared at him. They could just ask her when she woke up!

“Her world’s gone.”

In that second, Error felt his soul run cold. “…what?”

“Her world’s gone. She told me about it while we were looking for you.” Ink shrugged in his bindings. “Had me curious, really. She knew her world was long gone, she’s tried to go back. Yet she also knows what you do.”

Error took a step back from Ink. No, no that couldn’t be right… then again, he removed the kid who could reset, destroyed everything… that was in the Underground. He didn’t look to see about other humans… the ones that were outside… he glanced back at Jewel. Had he…?

“Yeah, Sans and I were wondering the same thing. Did you do it? I doubt you even remember. You probably don’t remember which worlds you destroy. Very few stand out to you, right?”

“Shut up!!” Error roared at him. Had that just been another thing he had done to hurt her?

Ink was triumphant, his smile evident that he was pleased with himself. But his smile faded as he saw Error leaving him strung up. “E-Error?”

“Shut up!” he roared again as he went and sat back down by Jewel.

Ink started to panic a little. Error had left him in front of the white walls… “C’mon Error, this isn’t funny!”

Error grumbled and just started to ignore him, sitting back down beside Jewel. Now he had more to think about. What world could she have come from? He started wracking his brain trying to come up with an answer.

Ink struggled against the strings that bound him. “I’m not there, I’m not there…” he started rapidly repeating in his mind. He was in his Doodlesphere, he was fine. This white wasn’t the world, it was fine. But no matter how much he told himself this, just staring, disoriented and upside down at this white wall…

“Error, get me down!!” he started screaming, flailing as much as he could against his bonds. When he didn’t hear anything, he started to really panic. His face grew pale and his teeth clenched tightly. He struggled wildly, trying to get out of his bonds.

“Please!!” Ink started screaming, panic ringing through his voice and pulsing through his body. “Error, please, let me down!!”

Error turned, a little curious about what was going on with the ink stain. He would be lying if he didn’t recognize the panic in his voice. He knew that feeling too well. He had been living it recently… between Jewel and his internal struggle… Though when he came around to see what was going on, he was honestly taken aback.

Ink was flailing, swinging in his strings as tears streamed from his eyes. They were wide open and more importantly, white. They weren’t the colorful shapes they normally were. They were small white pinpricks. Error froze for a second before he took pity on the petrified skeleton, cutting him loose.

Ink fell to the ground, panic still coursing through him as he backed away from the white wall. He hyperventilated, breathing heavily as he turned and quickly looked around. Still, despite all the color around him, he wasn’t calming down.

Error didn’t fully know what was going on with Ink… but he slipped his coat off. He didn’t know what was going through his mind or why he was doing this, but he threw his coat over Ink’s face. He watched for a second as Ink went to grab it, but he didn’t pull it off. He just clenched it against his face. Error rose a brow, looking plenty confused but somewhere in him… that amount of irrational fear…

“Ink,” he called, the skeleton in question not seeming to respond to his voice. “You… said you feel around Jewel, right? She… calms me down,” he admitted softly. “Even unconscious… she can probably help you too.”

Ink sat there, staring at the darkness that now surrounded him. Black was better than white… and he could touch this one. He couldn’t help as he sobbed into Error’s jacket, before he suddenly felt a wave of nausea come over him. He quickly got up, moving Error’s jacket out of the way before vomiting a bunch of black Ink.

Error back away as Ink vomited. At least he missed his jacket… not that he was sure he wanted it back now. It was ripped anyway, as was his shirt… at least the t-shirt underneath only had a rip at the sleeve. It wasn’t too bad… he could probably mend it…

“The hell was that?” Error asked him, almost demanding an answer.

“I…” Ink still sobbed. “I can’t… can’t stand… white spaces…”

Error stared at him for a moment. So it was like his… He didn’t like cluttered things like here, it made him anxious, claustrophobic…

Ink blinked a little as a familiar blue fell into his field of vision. He glanced over only to see Error holding a set of strings in front of him, while not looking at him. After a moment of awkward silence, Error spoke up.

“I can’t touch you, idiot,” he muttered.

Ink blinked before his eyes started to gain a little more color as he slowly grabbed the strings, feeling Error pull him back up. It really threw Ink off. He just went and attacked Error… telling him that he probably destroyed Jewel’s world… he didn’t know about his issue… yet here he was, offering him what he could….

Ink followed behind Error as he went back to sit with Jewel. At first, he tensed, but he quickly went around the other side to look outward and not at the walls. He was still uneasy, so instead he focused on Jewel, who was on the grass. He went to go stroke her hair, but he quickly realized he was still clutching Error’s jacket. He blinked at it, before looking over at Error, making sure he wasn’t seeing things.

“Uh… you want this back?” Ink then started, looking a little embarrassed as he held out the jacket back to Error.

Error looked at him, a bit annoyed, but rather bored. “Did you puke on it?”

Ink blinked, blushing a little. “I… don’t think so?”

Error rolled his eyes. “Whatever. It’s trash now anyway.”

“I can fix it for you,” Ink quickly offered.

“Forget it.”

Ink didn’t know why his refusal bothered him like it did. “I can make you new ones,” he offered instead.

“Forget it!” Error bit.

Ink’s face fell a little before he started getting a bit angry. “Error, why won’t you let me help you?!” he barked at him. “You act like you hate me, yet when I’m freaking out you’re nice, what the hell gives??”

Error wouldn’t look at him. He was too embarrassed by the implications. “I don’t need your help,” he simply said. “But… I get it,” he said softly. “The fear… I can’t stand… cluttered things…” he muttered.

Ink stared at Error before he looked around his world through the half that let him. He did create a lot… no wonder he had an issue before…

“Thank you,” Ink muttered a little.

Error blinked a little and turned back to look at Ink. He forced a look of annoyance on his face so he wouldn’t seem too soft. What was Jewel doing to him? “Well, you touched me when I was unconscious. I suppose we’re even.”

That was a fair trade-off. Even if he knew about Error’s phobia and he didn’t know about his… he wasn’t about to lower the score on his side. But… the silence was killing him. He was still full of anxiety, still coming down from that panic… Though he knew Error wouldn’t talk about much of anything unless it interested him… Or…

“So… uh… when are you going to let Jewel have a sketchbook again?”

“What?” Error snapped with confusion in his voice. Why did this ink stain want to talk so badly?

“I mean… she’s been holding back on getting one. I offered, but she was worried about what you’d say.”

Error was confused, why would she..? And then it hit him. The last time they really fought… She really hadn’t gotten another one?

“You know, just because she draws doesn’t mean she’ll like me better. I think this whole thing has kind of proven that point. She chose you over me,” Ink said softly. “That day, I extended an invitation to work with me, be friends, but she chose to go back to you.” And honestly, that stung. “I mean… I’m glad she’s my friend now… but I’m not going to get between you two. I’m not going to make her choose me over you. But having a sketchbook is important to her. It’s how she handles stress.”

“How the hell does it help her with stress?”

“So she doesn’t… ya know… with the arm.”

Error stared at him, confused. “How does that work?”

Of course he wouldn’t get it. He sighed. “Art is therapeutic for some, and it definitely is for Jewel. When she’s depressed, she’s gotten into the habit of drawing out her feelings, or something similar instead of trying to…. “turn the pain physical” as she said it.” He honestly had trouble saying it himself, the thought of her doing that again didn’t sit right with him.

Error’s eyes widened and he looked down to her arm. “She… she wouldn’t…”

“Dude, she said you wrapped up her arm. Were you not paying attention?” Ink leaned over and grabbed her left arm from under her, pulling it out slightly. He pulled her sleeve back and pulled her glove up. Around the injury, he pointed to all the scars that littered her arm. “She’s done it before!”

“S-stop.”

Ink looked back up to see Error glitching out. His form was destabilizing. As much as he wanted to mess with him for everything… even he had his limits. He was being a little harsh and he knew it. He pulled the glove back up and pulled her sleeve down before gently putting her arm back where it had been laying.

“Just… let her do what she needs, Error. She’s been through enough without all of us adding to it.”

“How would you even know what she’s been through?” Error snapped a little, getting defensive. Yeah, her world was gone, she told him that… he could understand not telling him… especially with how he had been pushing her away… but there was no way Ink knew more about her than he did.

Ink sighed a little. That defensive trait of his was getting on his nerves. “Dude, she told me, remember? How else was I going to learn about her world being gone?”

“I don’t believe you. How much of this are you making up just to mess with me?!” he barked.

“Everything I’ve told you is true!” Just some omitted facts and added insinuations.

“Why the hell would she open up to you?!” Error bit, not wanting to admit to himself how horrible he had been that she had to open up to Ink.

“Dude, I told you, she had a breakdown looking for you!” he bit back. But he softened his tone slowly. “And… Sans and I wore her down…” he sighed after a while. “That fight we had before we started looking for you really got to her, I think… She kept trying to pull away from us and we just… latched on with everything we could. Even when it was just me and her, she tried and I just wouldn’t let go… when I asked her why she even tried to be friends with us if she wasn’t willing to open up, she…”

Error let out a bit of a sigh, unable to stop himself from grabbing his necklace through his shirt. “It was something you wanted, right?”

Ink blinked and looked up, confused as he looked at him. “Something like that… what are you..?”

“She made every forward step in our friendship, don’t get any ideas,” he muttered. “She opened a door and I walked through… hesitantly sometimes but not always,” he said softly. “She’s… got this way about her… just makes you want to get closer… even if it’s against your better judgment.”

Ink sat there, listening for a moment. “Why are you so afraid to get closer to her? You know she cares about you. More than the rest of us. You’re special, Error, why are you trying to waste it?”

“Because I’m dangerous, Ink! How do you not get that?” he barked before looking down at her. “I’ve hurt her when I didn’t want to… I don’t mean to hurt her but it’s… just what I do… she doesn’t even care and that thought scares me,” he admitted, not even sure as to why. “She’s going to stick around until I kill her…”

Ink listened, surprised that Error even bothered to open up like that. Maybe Jewel was right that meeting Error first was better for all parties involved… This was the first time they really got to talk… he should at least try and be serious about it. “You’re not just a destructive force, Error.”

“Ha, that’s rich coming from you,” he bit, his sarcasm hitting a high peak. Venom was dripping from his words.

“No, I mean it,” Ink tried, genuine feeling coming through his words. “I… really do wanna be friends with you, Error. I don’t know why you keep thinking I don’t.”

“You’re not serious about anything, squid. And why would I wanna be friends with someone who fights me?”

“We… don’t have to fight. We could… do what Jewel suggested?” he tried.

“Oh, great, and what did she “suggest”?” he rolled his eyes.

“Well… she was guiding you to AUs that either wanted or… “needed” deletion… but she also showed me a place that wanted help. Maybe… she can… keep us from finding the same ones? That way we can both do our jobs and not clash?”

“And why would I want to leave worlds for you to create, huh?” Error snapped.

“Damn it, Error, aren’t you tired of fighting?!” Ink snapped at him. “I can’t get a read on you at all! One minute you’re hostile, then you’re kind to me, willing to talk and now you’re hostile again!”

“Would you just-” Error started before he stopped, the crystal in his hand, still under his shirt, began to glow faintly. He felt it warm up first, of course, but he couldn’t help but look down at it. He wasn’t getting emotional, not like before… why was it triggering?

“What’s that?” Ink tilted his head, now entirely focused on what he was trying to look at.

“Nothing,” he muttered.

“It’s glowing,” he said, getting closer.

Error started to freak out a little, his glitching intensifying once again. “Back off, ink stain!” he barked, moving away from him.

“Oh, come on, Error!” he sighed. “I’m trying to open up my figurative soul here! You can’t even tell me what’s going on? That’s definitely new.”

“It’s private,” Error muttered, a faint blue dusting appearing on his cheeks.

Ink groaned, sitting back, crossing his arm. “Fine...” he puffed his cheeks and fell silent, much to Error’s relief. All he wanted was to talk to him… It was awkward to sit here in silence after everything that had gone through between them. And he was really confused now… He knew Error pretty well he thought, for an enemy. Yet here was… on an emotional rollercoaster. Hostile the majority of the time but he did antagonize him through the years…

It was maybe an hour that they sat there. Ink was holding out pretty well, but he just couldn’t get his mind to stop. Something Jewel had said before rang through him and he had to get it off his chest. “Error…”

“Ugh, what?” he muttered, an exasperated sigh escaping his teeth.

“I… I really do want to be friends…”

“This again?” he groaned.

“I mean it. I…” he moved closer to Jewel, gently taking her hand from behind her. She was cold to the touch and it worried him. “I just can’t… stop thinking about how similar we all are…”

“We’re nothing alike,” he muttered.

“Really? I can’t stand white, empty space, you embrace it. You can’t stand cluttered spaces and I need it. You can’t handle being touched, Jewel craves it, and I really don’t mind… We all create in our own way… you make puppets, Jewel draws and creates her crystals while I bring anything I want to life or into reality… and I… don’t know about you but… Jewel and I were both trapped in endless voids for a long time…”

Error finally spared him a curious glance, looking over at him. “What do you mean?”

“I mean… with me… I woke up here, in the Doodlesphere… I didn’t have a soul then, I couldn’t feel… it was nothing but white… and I didn’t… with nothing I just sat here… for the longest time… I don’t know how long… before finally a creator poured color into my life. Being splashed with yellow, I felt joy for the first time… but when the color faded… I went back… it was a… cycle… and I found myself craving the colors more and more… but I was still alone… no matter what I brought to life, despite caring for them, it just wasn’t… but then I found the AUs and it made me feel like I wasn’t alone anymore…”

Error was silent for a moment. He didn’t like remembering this too much… “Is that why you’re afraid of white space?”

“I… guess so,” he said softly, rubbing his arm with his free hand. “With it being white and empty, it just… puts me back to the bad days, ya know? When I had nothing, no drive… I don’t like being like that.”

Error let out a soft sigh. “That’s precisely why I like it…” he muttered softly, causing Ink to look over. “It’s familiar, comforting. Too much stuff and it’s like… suffocating,” he sighed.

“You don’t like change, do you?” Ink asked sincerely.

“Not really… it took me a while to get used to Jewel hanging around… but now I… don’t like it when she’s gone. She’s the one constant in my life now… aside all the white.”

“Well… you know… change can be good. I mean, look what happened with Jewel. I know you think I’m annoying but… I’d like to get to know you better, Error…”

“You’re too random,” Error muttered softly. “Jewel is… stable, I can generally guess what will happen.”

“You’re pretty erratic yourself,” Ink pointed out.

“Why do you think I don’t like it in you?” he pointed out. “It’s just… too much to deal with.”

Ink couldn’t help but chuckle a little. “Ya know, you and Jewel have that in common too. You both get overwhelmed socially. What do you two even do together?”

“Mostly just watch Undernovela and sit around, randomly talking. She’s getting better at crocheting.”

“Really? She said she failed at it.”

“Of course she’d say that,” he chuckled softly, looking down at her. “Small improvements, but improvement all the same.”

Ink stared at him for a minute before smiling at him. “You too.”

“Huh?”

“You’re not as angry and you’re actually talking to me. It’s… nice, Error,” Ink smiled.

“Don’t read too much into it. I’m stuck here until Jewel’s better,” he muttered, hiding his embarrassment in a little hostility.

“Well… it’s a nice record so far,” Ink smiled. “Just over two days.”

“What?” he blinked.

“What, you didn’t realize? You were out for two days.” He then motioned out of the hidden space for Error. “Jewel’s search is still going. Apparently the code hasn’t checked the Doodlesphere for you yet,” he grinned.

Error’s eyes glazed over a little, and it made Ink worry. “She’s… normally better after two days…” he said softly.

“Well… last time it took her three,” Ink pointed out. “And with so many broken bones, who knows what else is wrong with the squishy bits. She’s low on magic so it probably is taking her longer than normal. But she’s alive, she’s safe. We just have to give her time.”

Error desperately wanted to reach out to her. Ink had one hand, why couldn’t he hold the other? He tried, he really did. His hand kept reaching out for hers, but every time he got closer, he started to heavily glitch and freeze.

Ink watched him for a moment before taking Error’s coat and lifting it over Jewel, but not dropping it. Error looked at him with confusion in his eyes, in the middle of glitching, but Ink just smiled. “C’mon, help me put it on her. She’s cold.”

It was strange to him that she could be cold with that thick jacket on… but Ink had touched her more recently. He took the sleeve, careful not to touch Ink and they spread out his jacket before laying it over Jewel like a blanket.

“There. Now between that plush and your coat, she knows you’re with her as much as you can.”

Error stared at Ink, absolutely flabbergasted that he was being so compassionate right now. A small smile crept upon his face as he turned to look at Jewel and as Ink continued to sit with him in silence.


	16. Sweet and Tart

# Chapter 16 – Sweet and Tart

Blueberry sighed heavily as he sat down on a stump near his puzzles. Of course, Papyrus had to just ruin his good mood with his puns! Today was supposed to be a MAGNIFICENT day after all! It still could be, what was he thinking?! He shot up and began to work on his puzzles, keeping himself busy. But in his mind, as it had been for several days now, he wondered when Dream would visit again. Ink had checked in yesterday, desperate to find the golden-hearted skeleton. He hadn't seen Ink so worried before… It was strange. Ink was usually so carefree. They got along in that regard, the three of them, spreading smiles… until something happened between Ink and Dream… neither would really talk about it and it worried him. He could try and keep his happy persona going, but sometimes it slipped when things got heavy. After all, motivation was great, but it was natural to be upset sometimes. He could find the bright side of anything, but that didn't mean he wasn't allowed to dwell in sadness for a little while.

It was during this momentary lull in his usual positive energy that a familiar golden-clad skeleton came into view. Dream looked over and became a little worried. Had the things he heard been true?

"Blueberry?" he called out, not able to hide the concern in his voice.

"Dream??" Blueberry turned around quicker than Dream realized, making him after to take a step back to avoid being whacked by that scarf of his. "Oh thank goodness! Ink's been looking for you everywhere!"

So what he had heard was true… he was worrying Blueberry with this? His face fell just slightly, a more serious expression than he normally had when talking to Blueberry adorning his face. "So… what I've heard is true? He's seeking me out? Do you know why?"

Why did that not surprise him? Of course he'd be the only one to get any details. "His friend is hurt!" Blueberry exclaimed, causing Dream to honestly look surprised. "He's really worried, it's been a while and she's apparently in a coma. He said it was pretty serious."

His issues with Ink be damned… if this was true, he couldn't just sit there. "Do you know where she is?"

"He said to just call him," Blueberry admitted. "I think he brought her back to the Doodlesphere with him?"

"Then I'm going," he said, about to head off.

"Wait! I wanna go too!" Blueberry called out, grabbing his arm.

Dream sighed but smiled at him. "All right. Hang on."

In the Doodlesphere, Error was getting rather annoyed at all the "guests" in his space. He still hadn't moved from Jewel's side. It had been about a week and there weren't any signs that she was going to wake up. It was weighing heavily on all of them, but Error felt the worst. It was his fault after all, something Ink had brought up a few times, especially when they were alone. While the rest of them hadn't said anything, he knew they had to agree with him. Why wouldn't they? She wouldn't be in this situation if he had stayed in control… if he hadn't gone out looking for something to kill instead of facing his problems and talking to her…

"Hey, Error, you alright?" he heard from behind him.

Error glanced over his shoulder, seeing Sans looking at him a tad worriedly. Error had been very silent since everyone started piling in, just not moving from his spot beside Jewel. Even he knew he was too quiet… he didn't insult Ink or anyone else, didn't answer anything unless it was directly related to Jewel's current situation and to help her.

It didn't help that Red was sitting with him. The two of them had been tag-teaming and sometimes jointly trying to heal Jewel together. Their magic was similar enough, despite the amount of LV Red had. He also admitted he wasn't very skilled at it, but he was doing what he could. It was better than nothing. The two of them had been working nonstop the whole week to keep Jewel stable, trying to ease her magical burden. They didn't feel many broken bones, just the spine, but they knew there had to be other damage otherwise she would have woken up, right? Error couldn't bring himself to correct them. What she said about her healing… it wasn't something that should just be blurted out. He found out she gave a very basic rundown to Sans as he tried to explain it to Red, how she goes into these comas to heal, to conserve magic… Either she told him a lie, or he figured that was the case when she passed out the last time after his attack…

Ink was the only one not hovering over Jewel right now. He was scanning his array of portals for any sign of Dream, praying he could find something. He looked exhausted. He hadn't really slept, constantly searching, taking power naps as his body demanded it. Sans had to come over and check on him constantly. Hell, even Red put his foot down when he wouldn't listen to Sans at one point. Those two made a scary combination. But he couldn't give up. This was the only thing he could do. Well, not really, he could sit with her like Error did… but he wasn't patient enough for that. He didn't know how Error could just handle sitting there, not being able to do anything. But Error remained vigilant at his post… so he had to do the same at his.

A soft, familiar hum graced his senses. He turned to see Blueberry and Dream standing there. Blueberry, of course, greeted him with the usual enthusiasm, but Ink didn't even notice. It was like everything shut off in his brain except for the fact that Dream was there. And he didn't look too enthused.

"Ink?" Blueberry called out, concern in his eyes before he was easily blown past. Ink didn't even notice him as he went to Dream.

"Dream! Thank stars you're here!"

It startled them both, Dream instinctively taking a step back as Ink stopped mere inches from him. "Well, I heard you were looking for me," he said simply. "Something about needing help-"

"Hurry, follow me!"

Dream was grabbed by the wrist as Ink started dragging him quickly through the Doodlesphere. Blueberry quickly followed, having to run behind them. Pleas to wait for him weren't caught by Ink, he was focused.

As he was pulled, Dream noticed the bags under Ink's eyes. The color in them was faded. He wasn't at risk of going blank, but the vibrancy was just… not there. "Ink, when was the last time you slept?"

"I had a nap earlier, I'm fine!" he said with a grin. Though it was obvious to Dream this wasn't the case. But he kept quiet until he could see what the issue would be.

To say he was surprised by walls of white in Ink's world was a bit of an understatement. He knew what white was to the painter and it confused him. Until he came around the corner of the white walls. Seeing Error, Classic and UnderFell Sans all huddled around a human he had never seen before was something he had not been expecting. It seemed Ink wasn't the only one not sleeping. All of them had fatigue etched into their features. He noticed the glow the two Sanses held on their hands as they hovered over her back. Before he could question, however, Blueberry managed to catch up.

"You can't leave the MAGNIFICENT SANS behind like that!" he protested, panting a little before blinking as he looked over at a few familiar faces, and one not so familiar. "Oh! Hello scary me!"

"The hell?" Red grumbled, too tired for this. That small version of himself was loud.

Sans chuckled a little. "Heya," he smiled a little. "This is Red. Red, this is Blueberry, the version of us from UnderSwap."

"UnderSwap?"

"Yeah," he shrugged. "Basically me and my Papyrus, but switched, so he acts like my Paps."

Red didn't know really how to take that, not having met his Papyrus yet, but he knew he wasn't like his, based on how Sans had acted before. And this little… ball of sugar.

"I believe there's a reason I was asked to come here?" Dream tried to redirect the conversation to the more pressing matter at hand.

"Right," Ink had spaced, fatigue getting the better of him and he was even easier to distract than normal. "This is Jewel, our friend. She got hurt pretty bad and she's been out like this for a week."

"I don't see any injuries," Dream started as he moved closer, noticing the careful eye of Error glancing over him.

"Most of it's internal," Sans spoke up, causing Dream to focus on him. "She told Error her spine was broken before she passed out, and I've been able to confirm, at least in two spots, nearly severed. There's been a few other broken bones we've been trying to mend, but I'm not sure what else is wrong, I can't see anything past her bones. I'm not really at a level to treat critically injured humans like this," he weakly tried to joke at his own lack of skill. "She can heal herself normally. Going into comas like this to conserve her magic. But this was the third time within a week she had been injured so severely. She's run out and can't… I mean, I can sort of feel differences in the injuries but I'm not…"

"It's okay. Let me see what I can do," Dream said as he knelt down, before glancing back at Blueberry. He was suddenly grateful he showed up. If she was truly as bad as they thought, this would drain him and while he hated "feeding" off of people… Blueberry was pretty much one of the best sources of positivity. "Blueberry, I hate to ask, but…"

"Don't worry about it, Dream," Blueberry grinned. "The MAGNIFICENT SANS is already prepared!"

Dream's attention, while on Blueberry, went to the woman beneath his hand as he already felt something… strange. He wasn't sure what it was, but his golden eyes focused on her form as he held a hand over her, starting to glow with golden magic. The second he did, there was almost an eruption of magic around them both. He could feel it swirling, eyes wide as he pulled back a little. That was definitely not what he was expecting.

"What?" Sans asked, pulling Dream back from his thoughts.

"You didn't feel that?"

"Feel what?" Red asked, his already annoyed gaze now adding confusion to it.

"It was like… I don't know. Overflowing… emotion, it just… swelled…"

"Dream, are you all right?" Blueberry asked worriedly.

"Fine it's just… I've never felt such strong positivity from anyone, even you Blueberry."

"Because it's yours."

Dream blinked as Error finally spoke up. Ironic he was the most qualified one to speak on this, even though it had been brought up before with the others. His time with Nightmare and Jewel gave him some insight he didn't think he would be sharing.

"What?"

Error sighed, annoyed, but he supposed he'd have to explain it. "She's an empath. Basically, with your magic, in particular, she's going to be amplifying it back, just naturally."

"I don't…" he looked at him, confused.

"We're… not sure exactly," Sans spoke up, causing Dream to shift back to him. "Jewel explained it once when we ran into Nightmare…"

Error eyed him. He remembered Nightmare? Then he… he did remember everything… but how?

"She's met Nightmare?" Dream paled a little.

"Yeah, it wasn't pretty," Ink sighed a little. "It was like this… weird thing. She said she basically absorbs emotion and reflects it back without thinking. So she-"

"She was feeding him," Dream realized… that's why he felt it. She was reflecting his own positivity back at him, amplifying it…

"Yeah… be careful," Sans warned, causing Dream to look cautiously. "Nightmare was in my world. We weren't even in the same area and she felt him. It caused some damage to her brain. She kept bleeding through her nose… when she got closer… I don't know she wouldn't be honest with us."

"Is he why she's like this?" Dream then asked, afraid to know the answer.

"Oh, no," Ink spoke up. "This is from a fight with a caveman version of Sans. She got slammed hard protecting Error."

Dream glanced back at Error, who tensed up and glared at Ink. "Never thought you would need protection," Dream couldn't help himself.

"Yeah, even Error can bite off more than he can chew," Ink grinned.

"Shut up, ink stain!!" he barked.

Dream could feel a shift in Jewel's positivity. Strange… she was unconscious, she shouldn't be… it was faint, but…

"Ssh!" Dream quickly sounded, making everyone turn to him. He got quiet, leaning in.

Everyone just watched him. He gently put a hand on the top portion of her chest, trying to feel… whatever this was out. He was trying not to use his magic as much, seeing how she reacted… Nightmare was probably actively feeding on her, but he was worried he would cause more harm than good now.

He heard the shifting of cloth and armor as Blueberry sat down next to him. He spared him a glance to see his eyes shining in the shape of Stars. He had his usual positivity just bursting from his form. He was quiet, as hard as it must have been for him in that moment and it was impossible for Dream to not smile at him. His friend was really something. Trying so hard to… spread positivity…

He glanced back down at Jewel with a curious look. Her soul was… responding. It was a feeling he knew well enough as he felt it in his own. When he was tired, weak… that need to greedily absorb that essence… he had to test it. His own magic was too dangerous if what Sans said was true. He could really hurt her.

"Blue," Dream said as he looked over. "I need your help."

"Of course! How can the MAGNIFICENT SANS assist?"

He could feel her respond. This was promising… but if she was like him… He hesitated for a moment. A little bit was all he needed to try then he could take over. Dream took Blueberry's hand, leading him over and having him take his spot with his hand over her chest.

"I just need you to be you. Like you would for me."

Confused glances were all around, except Blueberry. He was motivated, determined. His eyes shone brightly as stars and Dream could feel her, even without touching her that she was responding.

"Human! I know we don't know each other but I, the MAGNIFICENT SANS, am rooting for you! I know things may look bleak but I believe in you! You have all your friends here and two new ones! We're all waiting for you to come back! I know it may not be easy but we'll keep waiting for you!!"

Red twitched a little, Error sharing his sentiment with the same annoyed expression on his face. "'Dat has ta be the corniest-!"

"Wait, look at her soul!" Ink exclaimed, noticing the faint light of her soul finally shining again, that strange, white light.

"Da fuck is goin' on?" Red questioned.

"She's responding to positivity," Dream thought aloud.

"I thought you were the only one who could do that," Blueberry blinked, turning to him.

"You said she was an empath?" Dream then questioned the others.

"She said that," Sans clarified. "We don't really know much about her, she won't let us in."

Error sat there for a moment, contemplating. Dream found something… and it was clear he knew something the others didn't. No one else could say anything… but would it help her?

Everyone's attention was on Error when he finally got up, walking away… out of the white space where he was most comfortable… away from Jewel.

"Error?" Ink called after him.

"This is ridiculous. I need air," he muttered as he left.

Dream, however, didn't miss the look he got. It was less than a second, but he saw what Error silently tried to tell him. "Blueberry, keep it up," Dream then broke the silence again. "I need to think on this, so I'll go check on him."

"Got it, Dream!" Blueberry grinned. Task initiated. Blueberry wasn't going to rest until he could give this human all of his positive energy!

Dream got up and went out of the somewhat secluded area and looked around. He saw Error leaning up against what seemed to be a tree with a portal open. He walked up as he reached in and pulled out a chocolate bar. Error noticed him and silently offered it to him, which he took before he watched Error pull out another for himself. It was rare Error was generous, at least to him so he wasn't going to look a gift horse in the mouth. They stood silently for a moment as chocolate was enjoyed.

"So… it's strange to see you with Ink… and calm…" Dream started.

Error was silent, his mind contemplating. Was he really going to do this?

"And with a human…"

"She's… my friend…"

Dream didn't believe his ears at first as he looked over at Error, golden eyes wide. He didn't necessarily get along with Error, but he respected him and what he did. After all… he helped limit how many worlds Nightmare could exploit… and deleted many that were under his spell and beyond hope.

"After what Blueberry said… I didn't think…"

"Me either," he quietly said before sighing. "Listen, I don't want to shoot the breeze with you," he got a little curt. "Can you figure out what's going on with Jewel or not?"

"I… maybe," he said softly. "She's responding like I would to Blueberry's positive vibes. I'm afraid I would overload her on my own, I don't know if healing her would do more harm than good."

Error listened, understanding at least where he was coming from. But… "This doesn't go past your teeth, got it?"

Dream looked at him confused, but agreed, wholeheartedly.

"Jewel's not in… a normal coma," he explained. "She's retreated into her soul."

Dream's eyes grew large. "What? How is that..?"

"I don't know, she never fully explained it. But it's like Ink coming back here. It's her… space. She doesn't do it because it leaves her body vulnerable, but when she got hurt, she didn't have a choice. It meant she wasn't able to function with her body in the state it was and went into an emergency state." He was trying to dumb this down, given how he didn't seem to react well to his explanation before. "When she's in there, her magic is amplified. The reflection of your own positivity is going to be more intense than normal."

Dream started thinking about it. That made sense with how quickly she reflected the positivity back at him.

"I'm honestly surprised you could get so close to her soul to feel that, though," Error spoke up, pulling Dream from his thoughts. "With how much Nightmare was feeding off of her, to have it not affect you…"

Dream stared at him for a minute. "I… can't feel any negativity coming from her."

Error looked surprised, turning to him. "She's nice, but she's hardly like you."

"It might be because she's not fully conscious," Dream theorized. "You said she retreated into her soul, so it might not be reflecting her true emotions as she's not in her body…"

Error thought about it. It was possible… just more he was going to have to ask when she woke up… "If that's true… you might have your best window then," he spoke up. "I've been around your brother long enough to know how his "meals" work. Jewel's condition last time was because they were feeding off of each other."

"Off of… each other?" he questioned his word choice.

"That's what she said. She was absorbing his negativity and bouncing it back at him, and he was eating that, which made him stronger, then she absorbed that same energy back and it was this weird loop."

"Are those your words or hers?" he asked quickly.

"Hers more or less… why?"

Dream began to think, his eyes bouncing from one spot on the ground to another as things processed in his mind. All of this was familiar… from a different perspective. His perspective. "Do you know how her magic works?"

"Not particularly," he started. "I've been told she had healing magic, though the others have seen it, I haven't. The only thing I've seen her do is create a barrier and heal herself like this."

"How long does it usually take her?"

"Most of them only took her two days. Apparently before this it took her three."

"So her magic is gone…" he started thinking. This was sounding more like him than he was comfortable with. He had to get back to Blueberry. "Thank you."

"Not a whisper," Error glared at him.

Dream nodded and headed back toward the others. He wouldn't tell a soul. It wasn't his place, nor did he want to risk crossing Error. The fact he knew something that personal about her…

Looking in, concern creased Dream's brow as he looked at Blueberry. He looked a little dejected. Was he being drained too much? Nightmare was after her… could she take more from a person than he could?

"Blueberry, is everything all right?"

Blueberry looked up at Dream, forcing a smile. "I… I don't know," he admitted. "I'm… I'm trying but I don't… know if it's working."

"What do you mean?"

"I mean… I don't feel… different. When I give you energy it's… like calming down. But I… don't feel anything different."

Dream worried for a moment before putting his hand over her, glowing with that golden aura which only swirled around them again. It was something he was going to have to get used to. It was… kind of overwhelming, this much positivity all at once. He could feel her soul greedily reach for it, but the fact was it didn't disappear… He decided to take a chance and start healing her. His eyes started glowing with that brilliant gold as he focused more intently. He barely had to do anything, just the act of using his aura around her seemed to be doing more than enough. The more he tried to heal, the faster the injuries disappeared. It was… astonishing how quickly it worked. It was like his magic was amplified with her own. He was feeding her, obviously, but it was also like… combined it was… he wasn't sure, but he really hoped she would wake up.

Blueberry stared at his friend. Dream, despite caring about everyone, didn't have many he kept as close as they were. Ink was once a part of this elite group but now it was just him… so when that spark ignited in him, seeing his eyes light up like that hadn't in years, Blueberry was excited to get to know this person. Anyone who had the ability to light Dream up like that he just had to meet!

Dream pulled back after a moment, his aura dropping and he held his head. Blueberry caught him as he got a dizzy spell and everyone looked at him worriedly.

"Dream! Are you all right?" Blueberry quickly asked.

"Yeah," he said softly. "Just… overwhelmed. That was… weird."

"You're sure?" Sans asked, causing them both to look in his direction. "You look a bit weirded out."

"It's not something I'm used to," Dream admitted. "It was like she used my own magic with me, but she's not conscious… it's…"

"That does sound weird," Sans admitted. About as weird as using his blue magic on himself. Not the greatest feeling in the world.

"So, how is she?" Red asked, finally bringing it to the matter at hand. He didn't care about being rude. The dude could be weirded out and traumatized, he didn't care. He just wanted to know how Jewel was!

"The injuries are healed," Dream explained, "She used my healing magic in conjunction with her own, it… was strange… She should wake up in time, once her body recovers enough. Her magic is still pretty low."

"So… we have to just give her positive vibes to help with that?" Sans asked.

"It's… what I think anyway. She was grabbing for my energy, though it's like… she doesn't take it… I don't know, it's confusing."

"Just more to ask her," Sans sighed.

Dream looked up at him, confused. "You don't think she'll explain it?"

"Dude, I can't even get her to explain why she's mad at me."

"She's not mad at you, Sans," Ink spoke up, having been kind of in the corner, half out of it. "She's willing to talk it out but you can't be snapping at her every two seconds."

Blueberry and Dream sweated as the two started arguing a bit. Blueberry, however, noticing that Error was still gone, got up and went to go look for him. Dream watched him carefully but decided to give them space. He needed to make sure Jewel was really all right, watching her, and hopefully the arguing the room wouldn't drain her like it would him.

Error was leaning against that tree still, not having finished his chocolate yet… or was he on a second bar? It was hard to tell with him. Blueberry took a breath and walked over, smiling, but his usual energy was toned down severely, remembering how Error got with it.

"Hi, Error!" Blueberry tried, grinning at him.

Error glared at him before turning away.

Blueberry blinked, swallowing down the lump in his throat. "Uh… I just… wanted to let you know… Dream's done. He's watching her for a moment, but it looks like she's all healed up!" he tried, an uneasy smile on his face. Error glanced back at him and he got a little more uncomfortable. "S-she's… s-still unconscious but if you just… send her p-positive feelings she'll wake up, I just know it!"

"They could have told me that," his voice low and threatening, "Why are you?"

Blueberry took a step back, steeling himself. "I just… we haven't had a chance to talk in a long time…"

Error burst out laughing, and not in a good way. Blueberry paled a little as he listened to that familiar maniacal laughter. It sent chills down his spine.

"You know, you said that last time," he said with a sadistic grin, turning to him. "Before I made you attack your brother."

"Wh-wha…?" Blueberry was struggling to remember. "N-no, I-I would've.."

"No, no you wouldn't," he said with that grin. "And neither would your no-good brother. But you can ask Ink, he'd remember. And so would Jewel, for that matter. You know, she's the only reason the two of you still have your world." It was as if he was just realizing this, despite the conversations they had in the past. She had stopped him… and he just accepted that?

He had met Jewel before? Or had she done something he wasn't aware of? "A-and she's y-your friend, right?" he tried, though that thought kind of hurt.

"Surprisingly," he said, not really believing how lucky he had gotten. He still should push her away… but he couldn't bring himself to anymore. Not after this…

"S-see?" Blueberry then spoke up, his next words really getting under Error's bones. "I knew if you just had a friend you'd be--"

Blueberry found himself wrapped in strings, pinned and tied to the tree Error had just been leaning on. Error loomed over him, his arm stretched out and clawing into the bark as his eyes narrowed dangerously at the small skeleton.

"Don't get any ideas," Error seethed venomously. "She's not going to be your friend. She doesn't even like you."

Blueberry's face grew paler. "S-she hasn't met me… she c-can't…"

"You think either of us give a damn?" he hissed. "She saved your ass, but not because she likes you. In fact, you can even ask Ink. She straight-up hates your AU. She only saved it because others do and she's not as selfish as I am. She's actually helped me destroy AUs, and I'm sure it won't take me long to convince her yours is not worth saving again."

Tears were lining Blueberry's eyes. He didn't want to believe Error, but he was scared. Error had done some things in the past to hurt him and the thought that he had, so recently… and the fact that the human he was so excited to meet, the one that gave Dream so much hope might not be what he thought…

"Error!!"

Ink hadn't liked how long it took for Blueberry to come back, not that he had been gone for long. He, like Dream, knew the issues the two had, Blueberry had opened up to them both when they were the Star Sanses. But unlike Dream, he had been there for the recent events, how Error hadn't forgiven Blueberry like they had once thought. And with Error on edge as he was recently… he didn't trust him not to lose his temper. And it looked like he was right.

"Let him go, Error!" Ink then scolded, demanding. "This isn't helping anyone, especially not Jewel! Dream says she needs positive feelings right now, not this!"

Error growled, making Blueberry shrink down, but he felt himself being freed. Error pushed off the tree and started walking back to where Jewel still was, though he glared at Ink on the way back.

Ink returned the glare, but he quickly turned to Blueberry, who had sunk down and started silently sobbing. The painting skeleton knelt down and tried to comfort Blueberry to the best of his ability. But he was tired, probably not in the best mindset right now. However, what Blueberry asked him next really shook him.

"Does Jewel really hate me?"

Ink tensed up, looking down at the crying skeleton. "You can't believe everything Error says," he tried. "You know he lashes out when he's moody, and he's stressed out. He's not used to caring this much about anyone."

"Ink… please," he said softly, those big blue eyes lined with tears. "H-he said you were there… please… What happened? What don't I remember?"

Ink sighed and sat down beside him. He put his arm around him, giving him what comfort he could. "Sorry, Blue," he started, rubbing the back of his neck. "I tried to stop him. But Error… well…"

"S-so he did attack my world again?"

"Yeah…" he sighed a little. "Papy and I did pretty well with him, but he had you, we couldn't…" He tried to find the words.

"He used me against Papy again?"

"N-Not that long," he tried, anything to try and bring him back to his usual happy self. "I… I really don't know what happened, exactly… I don't think Jewel would know either, it seemed… weird for everyone involved."

"What did happen?"

"We backed Error into a corner. But the world started coming apart… the color disappeared, it started pixelating… and then you disappeared. Papy noticed Jewel first and she was just as confused to see us, especially Papyrus. She did… whatever it was she does, and reset your world. She put it back together like the fight with Error never happened."

Blueberry listened, slowly calming down. But what Error said still sat with him. "But… does she really hate me? My world? Error said that… that she did it because she's not selfish, that other people like us but she doesn't…" Ink looked uncomfortable, and it just made Blueberry's soul sink. "But she hasn't even met me! How can she make a decision about me when we haven't even met?!"

"Easy," Ink tried. "You're right, she hasn't met you. And I think that's the problem," he tried, making Blueberry focus on him. "She's… she's unique, like me and Error. She doesn't… have a world, she lives outside of all of it like we do. She watches the AUs and… well, she hates when I call her this, but I think she's a protector, even if she doesn't see herself that way," he said with a small smile. "She's not like me, unfortunately, she doesn't see it as all the AUs are precious… she has helped Error… but in a way that's still protecting, ya know?"

Blueberry looked confused. "No…"

Ink sighed but smiled. "Apparently, there are worlds that are barely existing… kind of in a limbo state. Worlds that would just fade away. She's been taking Error to those since they'd die anyway without him. She's been having him do what she calls mercy killings. They're going to die anyway, they're suffering as it is, so…"

"That… still seems so dark…"

"I know, that's how I feel about it too," Ink admitted. "But she's a good person underneath it all, I just know it!" he smiled at him. "And I know you two would get along! She's just… not been in the right mind to meet you. I've tried, but lately, it's been really bad. Between Nightmare and everything going on, she's been pretty… well, she's been depressed and she can't handle your level of energy. She's barely been able to handle me," he tried with a smile. "She hangs around Error mostly. She can't even bring herself to really be around Classic's Papyrus, and he's kind of met her too, like you have, while she's out. He's worried about her too, but she's…" he sighed a little. "She's got this weird thing about friends. Maybe it'll be good for you to talk to her. Just… try and keep the enthusiasm down a little, okay? She did admit you're a little too hyper for her, but I think you two would get along great. She likes to cook, ya know, that might be something for you two to bond over."

It was a bit of a forced, small smile, but Blueberry did let it grace his features again. Error was just trying to hurt him again, wasn't he? He should know better than to just take what he said at face value. Ink squeezed his shoulder and pulled him a little tighter, trying to give him some comfort.

"Everything all right over here?" Sans asked as he walked over.

"Yeah, just Error being Error," Ink sighed a little. "How's Jewel?"

"She's fine, just resting. Dream double and triple checked. All her wounds are healed, it's just waiting for her to wake up." Though Sans didn't miss the look on Blueberry's face at the mention of her waking up. "What is it, kiddo?"

"Error told him that she hates him," Ink explained.

"Eh, don't listen to him. He's just jealous we're all here and he can't keep her to himself anymore," he said with a grin. "I don't think Jewel can hate anyone. And I've given her plenty of reason to hate me."

"What did you do?" Blueberry asked innocently.

"I… haven't really been supportive of her friendship with Error," he admitted. "He's attacked her and while I don't know her that well, it didn't sit right with me, ya know?" he gave a lazy grin. "So I tried to force her to see what I saw… but I didn't take into consideration the fact that Error's changed a bit since being friends with her. He's still a douchebag, but he actually cares about her, genuinely."

"He didn't seem all that different to me," Blueberry muttered.

"Well… you two have a weird history of your own," Ink reminded, which made Sans raise a brow. He didn't know any of this, but he kept his mouth shut. Not that he knew Blueberry well, just knew of him. He couldn't hate a version of himself that acted like Papyrus after all. What more was there to know?

"You really think he's changed, Ink?" Blueberry asked.

Ink blinked, then thought about it. "A little, yeah," he said softly before smiling down at Blueberry. "He was really nice to me earlier. I antagonized him, ya know how I get, but when I was actually… well, he helped me and we talked. Like… really talked. He's a bit more on edge at the moment. I don't think he slept before this and he definitely hasn't slept again since he woke back up two days into this…"

"None of us really have," Sans admitted. "If it wasn't for the fact I keep draining myself, I don't think I would have slept either. Red's the same," he smiled a little. "But, hey, you know what it's like to worry over a friend, right?"

Blueberry smiled a little. "Yeah… I'd probably get testy too if I wasn't sleeping," he admitted. That settled it then! He'd give Error another chance after he got some rest.

Ink laughed a little as he saw the determination come back into Blueberry's eyes. Of course he'd bounce back. He got up with him and when Blueberry started heading back to Dream, he turned and smiled at Sans. "Thanks."

"Eh, anytime. He's essentially Paps, not hard to bring him back," he said with that trademark grin.

"Son of a--!"

In a second, the three Sanses all froze before bolting back to the white room, finding Dream and Red alone, staring at the now empty space.

"What happened??" Sans asked quickly.

"Error came back and we decided to give him a little space," Dream explained.

"He ran off with Jewel!" Red barked, fangs bared.

"Is that really okay?? Her back was broken, she wasn't awake!" Sans then started to panic.

"She's fine, physically," Dream tried to console. "Her magic is low but it's not like it would be for us. It's not dangerous for a human to have low magic levels."

In it all, though, Blueberry walked forward to where she had been sitting. Everyone looked over and Dream walked over to him, freezing a little as he saw the tiny tears in his eyes.

"Blue…" Dream started, unable to really read what was going on.

"I… really wanted to meet her…" he said softly, before looking up at Dream. "I wanted you to meet her…"

In a second, Ink was over at Blueberry's side, putting a hand on his shoulder. "Don't worry!" he grinned. "She'll be back eventually! I'll make sure she meets you guys, I promise! I know she's going to want to thank you both for everything you did!"

Blueberry turned and smiled at Ink, the tears slowly fading away. Though he would be lying if he said he wasn't disappointed. Dream, however, glanced at Ink, uncertain how he felt regarding the painter. It was weird, but he seemed… different…


	17. Red Flags, Blue Flags

# Chapter 17 – Red Flags, Blue Flags

Error was riled up after Blueberry had tried to approach him. For the life of him, he couldn’t contemplate why that guy would ever try and talk to him alone. They were _not friends!_ Not after what he did. The others seemed to notice he was in a bad mood so they all slowly left. He noticed Sans went toward where had left Blueberry, where Ink probably was. He ignored Dream as he attempted to talk to him. Despite his former relationship with Nightmare, Error had no issue with Dream. In fact, right now, he owed him for taking care of Jewel. Not that he would ever admit it.

He couldn’t think about it now anyway. Finally, with Red and Dream having left, this was the moment he had been waiting for. Jewel was healed, and finally, there were no eyes on him. He had been preparing to do this since he had to rely on Ink to bring her here. Still, the thought of it terrified him. He opened a portal back to the anti-void, and as carefully as he could in his panic, scooped Jewel up in his arms. She was so much larger than he was, it was awkward, even with her somewhat folded in the bridal-style carry he had her in. He quickly ducked through his portal, closing it behind him. He was severely glitching, barely able to hold her. To his credit, however, he didn’t drop her, and carefully laid her down on the ground before utterly flipping out.

“Holy fuck!! I can’t believe I did that!!” he screamed, shaking, glitching, barely holding himself together.

It surprised him that he managed to do it at all. He had been terrified of the fact since the idea first crossed his mind. But something in him knew that she wouldn’t be able to handle the onslaught of questions and people in her face when she woke up… He didn’t care if they were mad at him, the only person he cared about was Jewel. It should be obvious, he fucking carried her! That was way more than just a handhold or a shoulder touch! He had her in his arms, held against his chest and it… he put a hand over his soul, feeling it still humming intensely. His glitching was slowing down as he listened to it… at first, he thought it was fear… which was still wildly coursing through him, no doubt… but he felt his cheeks dust with a light blue color. Holding her that close… despite how terrifying it was… Maybe she wasn’t wrong…

It took another day for Jewel to wake up. At least, that’s what it felt like to Error. He hadn’t left her side, so the second her eyes started to flutter open, he was hovering over her.

“Jewel!” he called out in relief. “Don’t move around so much, take it slow,” he told her, his hands hovering, shaking. He would push her down if he had to, the thought alone, however…

Jewel barely moved, seeing him so close. She did feel something on her, but she couldn’t even move her head without risking bumping into him.

“Error, I’m fine,” she said with a tired smile.

He saw how tired she still looked. That worried him. “You don’t… look fine,” he said softly.

“Using my words against me?” she teased, smiling a little brighter at him, causing him to chuckle a little. But the small smile she forced onto his face quickly fell and he started to shake. “Error?” Despite his closeness, she managed to slowly rise without bumping into him, catching him off guard.

“Jewel, you... you shouldn’t be moving,” he tried.

“Error, I’m fine. Injuries are healed.”

“Then why are you so…”

“I’m exhausted, numbskull,” she teased, smiling at him. “C’mon, you know… well, maybe not you,” she chuckled. “You have way more magic than most monsters I’ve seen. But you know how it goes, right? Using too much. I’m much more human than I want to admit right now.”

“What do you mean?” he questioned, backing off a little to let her sit up, at her insistence.

She noticed she was being covered with his coat, noting the rip in the sleeve and everything started coming back to her. She looked him over, her brow furrowing in worry. “Error, when was the last time you slept? You look exhausted.”

“I’m not important.”

“Yes, you are!” she barked, making him blink and back up a little. She realized that she made him flinch and she pulled back. “Stop… sounding like me…”

Error stared at her a moment before he moved a bit closer, surprising her as he sat as close as he could without touching her. “Jewel, my injuries weren’t life-threatening. Besides, they’re gone.”

“Because Ink took advantage of you,” she scoffed a little.

Error blinked, a blush starting to creep on his face not only for what she said but the way she said it. “W-what are you talking about?”

“You know my situation, I wasn’t in a coma. I can still hear you guys.”

His blush darkened. “I-I wasn’t aware of that…”

“It’s… difficult, sometimes, I’ll admit,” she said softly. “It’s like you’re underwater and trying to listen in. But you,” she looked back up at him, chuckling. “When you screamed for Ink, it was kind of hard to not listen in. Not that you said much… but I remember hearing you protest his help so…”

So she put two and two together… not that it was hard. He sighed and rubbed his arm. “I’m sorry… I didn’t…”

“No, I get it,” she said softly, smiling a bit at him. “Trying to punish yourself, right? Error, what happened wasn’t your fault.”

He couldn’t help himself. Listening to her say that, after everything… “Of course it was,” his voice was soft as he turned his head away from her. “If it wasn’t for me, neither of us would have been in that situation. If I had just… talked to you instead of running away…”

“Error…” she wanted so desperately to reach out and touch him right then.

Tears lined his eyes as he looked back at her. “All I do is hurt you! Why do you keep coming back for me??” he demanded.

“Because, you’re my best friend. I care about you,” she said softly.

“You shouldn’t!” he barked, the tears finally falling. “I’m a murder! I destroy worlds! I can’t be a good friend, Jewel! I can’t… I can’t even..!” He clenched his eyes shut and held his head. “I didn’t mean it,” he sobbed. “I didn’t want to hurt you…”

“Error, if you’re talking about when I came back… I know that. I don’t know why, but I knew you weren’t in control.”

“Why didn’t you run?!”

“Because I couldn’t leave you, Error. Not like that.”

It took them both by surprise. Error launched forward and grabbed onto her tightly, glitching heavily as he wrapped his arms around her, squeezing with everything he had. Jewel had barely caught herself as he clung to her. She was breathless, but she couldn’t help herself. He made the first move. She wrapped an arm around him, the other holding them up as he leaned completely into her.

“I thought I got you killed,” he sobbed. “I was ready to die then you showed up and…”

“Ssshh. Error, it’s okay.”

“No, it’s not,” he squeezed her tighter. “I was so scared I couldn’t let go of you.”

“Like now, huh?” she smiled a little and adjusted herself to hold onto him with both arms. “Let me know if this gets to be too much, okay?”

“I’m freaking out,” he admitted, half laughing, “But I don’t want to let go. I don’t…ever want to let go! You don’t know how bad it hurt!” His glitching intensified. “Classic convinced me to sleep. After I woke up, I couldn’t… I couldn’t hold your hand anymore. I wanted to, but I..!”

Jewel slowly pulled him back, which confused him. This was what she wanted, right? He finally was doing it, he _wanted_ to do it, but she pulled him away from her? He flinched a little when he felt her hands on his cheeks, glitching more but he managed to look at her.

“Error, I’m not going anywhere. But I don’t want you to hurt yourself by forcing yourself to do this because of me. There’s time for you to work through this, okay? As much as I love the thought of being able to hug you when you need it, I don’t want you to go through any panic because of me.”

He felt her wipe the tears from his face and he held her hands as they caressed his cheeks. He had to admit, this was a lot easier to deal with. He took a couple of deep breaths, leaning into her touch a bit. He was still terrified of all of this, but it was her… he was trying to focus on that…

“Error,” he heard after a moment, “Look at me.”

He opened his eyes and looked up at her. She was smiling down at him and he couldn’t help the dusting of blue that decided to cover his cheeks. This was the most intimate he had been with anyone. She was the only he one had touched and she was trying to be careful with him, even when he wasn’t careful with himself.

“I promise, I’m not going anywhere. I’m never going to hurt you, and I’ll do everything to protect you.”

“Because you’re my best friend,” he finished with her, causing her to blink and blush a little.

“Finally got you,” he smiled a little before he finally reached his limit. He slowly pulled her hands from his face and shook, trembling as he let her go.

Jewel smiled a little at him. “I suppose you did. By the way,” she started, still smiling. “I really owe you.”

“For what?” he asked, a brow raised as his glitching started to calm down.

“For pulling me out of there. I’m really not in the right mindset to be handling all of those people. Just the thought of it… well, if I could glitch I’d probably be like you right now,” she smiled at him.

Error chuckled a little, the joke allowing him to calm down a little more. “I-I know,” he said, unable to help the stutter as a glitch took over his voice-box for a second. “Given that Blueberry _and_ Dream were there…”

Jewel smiled at him. “You’re a prince.”

Error felt his face flush and he glanced away. “Jewel… please… you know I’m not.”

Jewel chuckled a little, but she was really feeling all of that. She sighed a little and slowly stood up. Error turned when he heard her shifting and paled a little seeing her stand up.

“Jewel, you shouldn’t push yourself!”

“Error, relax,” she smiled down at him before snapping a bed into reality. She sat down on the edge of it, letting out a relieved sigh.

Error looked at her worriedly. “Are you hurting?” he asked, realizing that if she was… he just literally grabbed and squeezed with all his might. He started to pale and pulled back a little. He couldn’t stop hurting her! Even when just hugging her!!

Jewel grabbed his wrist as he was about to back himself into a corner. He glitched but looked down at her, surprised. “Error, don’t. Don’t even go there,” she said as if knowing what was running through his head. She let him go and patted the bed next to her. As he moved to sit, listening to her silent command, she smiled at him. “Don’t read too much into it. You don’t have muscles, so I don’t expect you to understand how stiff a human would get from not moving for so long,” she chuckled.

Error didn’t find the humor in it. “Jewel, you act like nothing bothers you. Hell, you acted like being burned by Nightmare was nothing… whenever I… Please, tell me you’re not holding back for my sake.”

Jewel blinked a little. Guess he was more observant than she gave him credit for… She sighed a little, rubbing the back of her neck. “You want me to be honest with you?”

“Yes!” he answered incredulously.

She let out a heavy sigh. “All right… but… please,” she said, turning to him. “Don’t treat me like I’m made of glass. I can’t stand that…”

Error looked at her, confused. “Jewel, you’re one of the strongest people I know. Why would I…” he then started to realize, “How often are you lying about your pain?”

“I don’t, not really. I… really don’t feel a lot of it,” she admitted. “But it’s not because I’m strong or anything...” Another heavy sigh escaped from her lips. “I was born with this condition, Error… I don’t expect a bunch of monsters to understand it, humans barely do. Basically, it’s a chronic pain disease, humans have no idea what’s causing it, just a bunch of theories. It didn’t start flaring up until I was a teenager, but I’ve had it since I was born. Just the slightest touch would send waves of pain through me on a bad day. So believe me when I say I get the whole no-touching thing,” she tried with a little bit of a smile.

Error stared at her, trying to process this. “You… you’re in pain all the time?” he realized.

“Normally, no,” she admitted. “My magic… it… well…” she sighed. “I didn’t really mess with it much growing up. I mean, hell, I didn’t know I had any until I was about eight and that was a trip, let me tell you…” she muttered. “But over the years, despite… well…” she tried to think back. “You remember when I said I had two types of magic, right?”

Error looked a little confused at the sudden change in topic. “You said you had two specialties in defensive and two in offensive. Not different kinds of magic,” he clarified.

“Well, technically…” Jewel chuckled a little, “My defensive and offensive magic are different types. As different as black and white…”

Error looked at her confused, before remembering… “The black and white crystals… the karma you keep mentioning…”

“Yeah, sort of…” she smiled a little. “See, knew you could put that together,” she nudged him a little, making him glitch a bit. She had to stop taking advantage of his lack of anger with her right now. “My magic is… weird, to say the least.”

“I’ll say. Dream said positivity was charging it.”

She blinked a little, turning to him. “Wait, what?” she paled a little.

“Positivity… you’re like Dream, your magic was fueled by positive emotions.”

“No, no…” she said, backing a little and paling at the implications that now laid out. “It’s… not quite like that…”

“Jewel… are you okay?”

“No, I’m not,” she said, shaking a little. “There’s a reason I’m vague about all this, Error. I can’t… not again,” she said, holding her head.

Error’s gaze softened and he leaned in, gently putting his hands on her shoulders, glitching like crazy in the process. He was doing this too much, but seeing her suddenly afraid… “Jewel… it’s okay. I’m here, I’ll help… but I need to know what’s going on…”

“Error…” she said softly. “I love that you’re trying to be affectionate right now… but this isn’t helping either of us,” she said, looking up at him. “It… hurts… please…”

Error pulled his hands back, eyes widening a little. “I-I thought…”

She sighed a little. “It’s because I’m out of magic,” she explained. “I’ve been… experimenting for years with my magic and I found a way to… well… not be so human anymore,” she explained. “Not in the way you see humans anyway. All weak and squishy… It’s dangerous as hell, so I started off really small… it’s still relatively small… but I’ve managed to mix my offensive and defensive magicks together. They’re never meant to touch and if I try and use too much at once, my soul wouldn’t be able to take it. But I’ve been working on it, building up resistances, getting used to doing it… It’s why I can heal quicker and use the black smoke at the same time… it’s also why I’m faster, stronger… It’s all my magic, Error. Without it, I’m a pathetic little blob of pain and misery,” she laughed hollowly, eyes tearing up.

“So… you… combine these magicks and that’s what keeps you from feeling the pain?” he asked.

“Yeah…” she admitted softly. “I used too much magic. My offensive magic is… kind of still there, but a lot of it was used to keep me… ya know, alive. I could fight, technically, but I… hate using it. I prefer to just fight hand-to-hand so I don’t have to… just using what I mix so I don’t…”

Error was silent for a moment, before standing up. “I’ll go find Dream,” he then said. “If he can help-“

“No!”

Error was surprised by how quickly she shot the idea down, turning to face her. The tone in her voice startled him. He had never really known her to lash out, but the look of fear in her eyes… “Jewel, I can’t help you here! I’m not a positive person, I can’t-!”

“Well, for starters, it’s not what you think!!” she barked at him.

“What do you mean?”

Jewel sighed softly, motioning for him to sit back down. He hesitated, but he listened.

“It’s… just not… I’m an empath, remember? All my magic is emotion-based. Remember, the crystals I use are based on emotions too. Every kind of emotion causes them. But Dream… he’s like Nightmare, right? I remember him telling Ink to give his brother his regards…”

“Yeah…” Error said softly. “They feed on emotions while spreading their respective ones. Dream tries to spread positivity while Nightmare spreads negativity.”

“And remember, Nightmare was feeding off of me… I’m hardly…” she said softly.

“But Dream said it was like…”

Jewel sighed a little. “Can you handle not knowing?” she asked.

“Jewel, I’m tired of being in the dark. If I had known more about all of this, I could have helped heal you faster, you wouldn’t be as exhausted.”

Jewel’s eyes narrowed a bit. “What… did you tell them?”

Error’s eyes widened. That look was… not what he expected. “Jewel, I didn’t tell _them_ anything! I did… tell Dream a little, but only because he was confused about how to help you! I swear, I only told him that… you were in your soul and everything was amplified. You can’t… I was lost, Jewel! I can’t heal you, Classic and Thirteen weren’t doing much! Dream was the only one making any progress! But he was afraid to try after Classic told him about Nightmare! I couldn’t..!”

Jewel watched him for a moment as he defended himself before she let out a sigh. “Guess I can’t argue that point too much…” She paused, leaving the silence between them for a moment. “Thank you… for not blurting it out…”

“I get it, Jewel,” he said softly. “I just… I really thought hard about telling him. Second-guessing myself the whole way. I know you… what you said was personal and private… I’m surprised you told me…”

“I trust you, Error.”

“But why?? I keep attacking you, Jewel! And I know you see it too! I was there at Classic’s! I heard you!”

“Dude, you have red flags all over the place, but it’s not a deal-breaker,” she defended. “And obviously you didn’t stay long enough. I ripped into Sans for those comments. Besides, he puts words in my mouth more than you do. You’re willing to listen, and you _care._ That’s enough for me to want to work through it with you.”

“Why do you want to?” he asked, his voice softer as a whisper.

Jewel sighed a little, moving into the bed. It caught Error by surprise. Was she going to sleep again? Was she going to avoid this whole thing?? He was visibly getting upset at the mere thought, but his attention snapped back when Jewel patted the bed next to her.

“I can’t sit up anymore. Lay down with me.”

His face flushed a little. He had laid with her before… on the ground… this was… “I-I thought you didn’t want to be touched.”

“There’s enough room to lay down and not touch,” she said softly. “Besides, you look as tired as I feel.”

Error was exhausted, he knew that. But if he laid down, he’d succumb. “Not until you explain all of this, Jewel! I’m tired of being in the dark!”

“Says the dude who tried pushing me away.”

Error froze. “Y-you heard that?”

“No. I saw it,” she said softly. “Because I’ve been there,” she sighed a little before reaching out, placing her hand near his on the bed, but not touching him. “I was like you, remember? I’ve told you this before… but I suppose I owe you a little more detail…” She closed her eyes. “I used to kill people too. Mostly in self-defense at the start, but… well… I was a little bitchy punk as a kid. After my magic started manifesting, I got really dark. I finally realized I had a way to get back at those who pissed me off. I fought people for the sake of fighting. I used my magic for all kinds of shit… mostly just petty bullcrap, but… one day there was this kid… my age, but… eh… I accidentally saved him. He pissed off this gang and I fought them because… well, why the fuck not? That and they thought they could push me around. Didn’t even need to pull out my magic, they were pretty pathetic… He hung around me like a little lost puppy. Nothing I did could shake him. I started seeing him everywhere I went and eventually he got me to talk to him… we became friends and he actually knew a lot about magic. Wound up helping me figure out what mine was, helping me learn more about it, control it better… not bad for only a few months.”

Error listened, seeing the similarities. “So he… saw the good in you?” he asked.

“Heh, I don’t know about that. There wasn’t much good in me at that point… but I suppose,” she held a small smile. “He stuck to me so I didn’t have much of a choice. I couldn’t just run away and be rid of him. He stuck around.”

“You picked up a few of his annoying habits then,” Error smirked down at her.

“Ha, yeah, I suppose… he took a chance on me, despite all the red flags… hell, I was covered in blood after that fight and it didn’t deter him… maybe it was his downfall in the end…”

Error didn’t like the sound of that. “Did you…”

“Me? No… well, not directly,” she sighed. “See, I had enemies… and it… caught up to me. He got killed because of me… not directly by my hand, but…” She opened her eyes slowly. “It’s a pattern with me, Error. People I get close to get hurt… either by me or… whatever. That’s what I’m most afraid of… and you… you’re already hurting because of me…”

Error felt his soul twist in his ribcage. “Jewel, you’re not hurting me!”

“Really?” she looked back up at him. “You ran off and nearly got killed because you overheard me and Classic. Even if it wasn’t the whole conversation, it was enough to make you not care if you died.”

“Of course I care if I die! I just… accepted the loss. If it wasn’t for you I…” he sighed and moved in to lay beside her. “Jewel… I’m just… confused…” he admitted softly. “I care about you, I know that… you’re… my best friend, the only one I have. I don’t deserve the kindness you show me… and you’re right, I tried to push you away… I thought I had to… to protect you. I kept… getting these nightmares where I would…” he flinched as another image came into his mind.

“Those are normal, Error,” she said, making him look at her, confused. “I had those too, for the longest time. I still do… It doesn’t mean you’re going to do them… you’re afraid of it happening.”

“But… I would… flash and then see my hand near your neck…” he admitted guiltily.

“Your body was reacting to the image. It wasn’t a sign of intent. It’s scary, I know…”

Error thought about it, before his hand went to the necklace, holding it. “Then can you… can you explain… why this hurt?” he asked softly, looking at her.

“Hurt… how?”

“I… I saw you,” he started softly, “In UnderFell. With Thirteen, Classic and Ink… watching you chase each other around… it started glowing and it just… kept hurting… but I… I couldn’t… at the same time, I needed it… I don’t…”

He flinched a little as Jewel put her hand over his, but he managed to not glitch as badly as he thought he was going to, especially since he didn’t expect it.

“Error… I’m sorry. You told me to go spend time with Classic and… well, I went there because Ink and Sans were pressuring me into the whole friend thing again. I… gave in, and Red… well… he helped me before, after our fight. He was the Sans I ran into. We talked and he helped me calm down. He was the closest thing I had to a friend other than you and well… you know, what you saw us doing… that was chocolate frosting. I was making you cupcakes.”

Error blinked, blushing a little. “W-what?”

“I knew what you were doing. You were pushing me away, you were acting weird… I’ve been there, remember? I just… wanted you to know that you were appreciated. You don’t have to open up to me if you’re not comfortable. But… I’m here…”

Error couldn’t help the tears that welled up in his eyes. “Damn it…” he leaned in, his forehead meeting her hand. “I… I just hurt… so badly after that… I… I couldn’t… I lashed out at everything… it was…”

“Why you were in that state,” she realized, her hand going up and gently wiping his tears away.

“I… I felt betrayed… but it didn’t make sense… I told you to hang out with Classic,” he admitted. “It hurt… so much… to see you having fun with them…”

“Error…” she called and he slowly looked up at her, “Just because I have other friends doesn’t mean I’m going to leave you. I’m never going to leave you.”

“I-I thought… if I pushed you away and you made the choice for me… it wouldn’t… I could blame you and be done with it… that I could protect you… but I… I…”

“Never works out that way, does it?” she smiled softly at him.

“How are you not mad at me? I put you through all of this…”

“Error, I’ve been there. I know what it’s like to go through it. Believe it or not, it does help to be on the receiving end.”

“It doesn’t… it doesn’t feel like enough…”

“It doesn’t have to make sense, Error. We’re people, not math,” she grinned a little at him. “Things happen that just don’t make sense. We feel what we feel, and it’s valid. No matter if it makes sense or not. You don’t have to understand it, Error. Just know… I forgive you, and I’ve never blamed you.”

He tightly gripped the hand that was around his. It was strange… he was becoming numb to the fear… it was still there, but he was craving her touch more. He didn’t know why… but he knew it would disappear, this confidence.

“I’m sorry,” he whispered, before he wrapped his arms around her, pulling her close. “I know you said no touching but I… I can’t… not when I’m finally able…”

Jewel blinked a little. He gripped in the wrong spot, and it did hurt… but she could understand what he was saying. She let out a soft sigh with a smile. “Okay,” she said softly but put a hand on his arm. “Then move a little,” she said, guiding his arm. “We’ll make it work. Just don’t squeeze too hard, okay?”

Error moved as she advised, but he wasn’t able to not squeeze her. His head was right underneath hers, his tears getting lost in the fabric of her thick shirt. Luckily, he wasn’t putting pressure in the wrong spots, so she was able to bear it easily. She, in turn, wrapped her arms around him, holding him close. She could hear the small hitches in his breathing.

“You should get some sleep,” she told him.

“If I do, I’ll lose this… I don’t… want to let go…”

“Error… this is never going anywhere,” she promised. “I’ll be here. One day, you’ll be able to do this without freaking out. And I’ll be here to experiment all you want.”

“Just… let me enjoy it for a while then,” he said softly.

She chuckled softly. “Of course… though it’s strange to hear you say it.”

He blushed a little. “You… were right,” he said softly. “It… it does help…”

Jewel smiled a little and leaned into the hug. “It really does…”

Error felt himself relax a little in her embrace. Tension he hadn’t realized he was carrying was melting as he felt a warmth he hadn’t been able to get before. How much had he missed out on because of his fear? But as he closed his eyes, he picked up on a faint thumping. Confused, he looked around.

“Hm? What is it?” Jewel asked, having almost fallen asleep with him like that.

“You don’t hear that?”

“Hear what?”

“Some… weird noise. I can’t hear it anymore…”

She blinked, then chuckled a little. “Oh, when you were against my chest?”

He looked at her, confused. “You make weird sounds?”

She laughed a little, smiling. “Humans do. We’re more mechanical than you’d think. Was it thumping? Like bum-bump?”

“Yeah! You know what it is?”

She chuckled. “Yeah. That’s my heart.”

“…heart?” he rose a brow.

“It’s… well, for humans, it’s like a… physical soul, I suppose. We can’t live without it. Humans are weird machines and we have all these intricate parts. If one fails, sometimes we can move on, others… not so much.”

“So… what does it do?” he asked, now curious.

“Well, the heart’s job is to circulate blood through the body. It’s essentially a strong pump, hence the sound. It’s housed with the lungs right here,” she said, putting her hand over her chest, “in my ribcage. The lungs oxygenate the blood and the heart pumps it through the body so my muscles and everything else has the energy it needs to work right.”

Error rose a brow. “Sounds overly complicated.”

Jewel laughed a little. “It really is. But eh. You just need to know so long as it’s beating, I’m alive.”

Error slowly put his head back down, focusing on the sound as his earhole pressed against her chest. “It’s so loud…”

“That’s because you’re practically on top of it,” she chuckled.

It was strange to hear how her voice changed when he had his ear to her chest, how the laugh sounded… everything… “Do you not hear it?”

“Not really. I mean, when I get a migraine it’s like I can. I feel it mostly, through my pulse. It’s this weird system we got,” she chuckled softly. “But sometimes, when my heart’s racing, sometimes it’s like it’s pounding in my ears so… sort of?”

“What would make your heart race?”

“Heavy exercise, fear… a few things.”

Error focused on listening to it for a while, that steady beat… “I could… get used to this…”

Jewel chuckled softly. “Oh, now you want to be my sleeping buddy?”

He blushed, closing his eyes. “Oh shut up…” he muttered. “I’m… I’m tired…” he admitted softly. “But… there’s a lot more I need to talk to you about…”

“I know,” she said softly, gently stroking his skull. “But, I’ll be here. We can talk about it when we’re more rested.”

“Promise? No more holding back?”

“I promise I’ll try. There are things I don’t like to talk about… but I’ll try for you, okay?”

“I can live with that,” he said softly as he started to drift off against her.


	18. You're Blue Now part 1

# Chapter 18 – You’re Blue Now - part 1

Blueberry was taking a break from maintaining his puzzles. After all, it was about lunchtime. His lazy brother never really paid much attention to it, but he was probably napping anyway. He could go yell at him… but he didn’t really feel like it. He hadn’t been as motivated as he could be and he was starting to feel like Papyrus was catching on. In reality, he had been disappointed… Dream left, which he understood, it was for his own safety, but neither of them had a chance to meet Jewel. Ink had theorized that Error took her back to the anti-void, but no one knew how to get there… except for Jewel and Error.

With a sigh, Blueberry reached for his lunch, only to find it missing. He blinked, looking around before he caught a squirrel in his lunch.

“Hey!” he called out, running after it. The squirrel quickly scurried off, obviously afraid of the tiny skeleton. “If you were hungry I would have shared…” he sighed as he looked down at his now-empty lunchbox.

“You know,” he heard, a tingle going through his spine, “it doesn’t really seem all that magnificent to be so down.”

Blueberry whipped around, bright blue eyes focusing on the human standing before him, as tall as his brother. Her smile was gentle and her eyes had a light to them as she looked down at him.

“Human!!” he exclaimed, hopping up. “You’ve recovered!!”

She chuckled, rubbing her ear a little. “Well, except for my hearing now.”

“Oh, sorry,” he quickly apologized, but he couldn’t help the beaming smile. “You had us so worried! But the MAGNIFICENT SANS knew you would pull through! Mwehehheh!”

“And I hear I’ve got you and Dream to thank for that,” she said with a smile.

“Oh, it was mostly Dream,” he grinned. “I was just there for a little extra positivity!”

Jewel chuckled, shrugging a bit. “Well, I owe you one, tiny.”

“Hey, I’m not that small!”

“Every one of you Sanses are tiny to me,” she grinned at him. Seeing him pout, she couldn’t help but chuckle. “C’mon. I saw your lunch got nabbed. I can take you somewhere.”

“I really rather not go to Muffet’s again,” he sighed. “Brother’s there all the time.”

“Well… you got food at your place? I can make you something.”

“Nonsense! You’re my guest, why would I let you do the cooking?”

“Because I owe you?” she rose a brow.

“You don’t owe me anything, human! Dream did all the work! I’m just happy you’re safe and sound!” he grinned.

“Okay,” she sighed, which threw Blueberry off for a minute. “Dude, for starters, I’m trying here, okay? I get the whole chivalrous knight thing, but really, I’m trying to help here. You have no lunch and I’m trying to do what I can to show you I appreciate what you did. And two… dude, you’re manipulative as fuck. No way in hell you’re as nice and naïve as everyone says.”

Blueberry blinked, confused at her, but as she stared him down he couldn’t help but laugh. “Okay, maybe you got me a little on the second bit,” he smiled at her.

“No shit,” she laughed. “The big eyes routine never worked on me, but damn if that wasn’t convincing.”

“Well, thank you,” he smiled, but slowly, it fell as he looked up at her. “So it’s true, then?” he asked softly. “You… really don’t like me, or my world?”

Jewel blinked. “Where did you hear that?”

“Error…”

She sighed a little. Of course… “Hey… this really isn’t something that should be discussed like this,” she smiled softly at him. “How about we get you some food, huh? I know I haven’t really eaten much of anything since before all this went down.”

“Wait, you haven’t eaten since before you were hurt?”

“Well… no,” she said, blinking.

“You haven’t eaten in two weeks??” Blueberry exclaimed.

“Two..? Oh! Damn, has it been a week since I woke up? Shit…” she sweated. “I remember Error mentioning that I was out for a week, but…”

“How can you not tell that??”

“Well, the anti-void doesn’t really have time flow. Nothing happens. You don’t _need_ to eat, sleep… anything there, really. Normal necessities aren’t important there.”

“So… there’s no time flow?”

“Nope.”

“So… when’s the last time you do remember eating anything?”

“Well…” she thought back. “I remember having coffee with Sans the morning before I got hit this last time… I had just woken up from a three-day coma… I made Red and his brother pasta, but I didn’t eat any unless you count a taste test for the sauce… same with the frosting for the cupcakes… then…”

“Too long!” Blueberry exclaimed, grabbing her hand. “Fine, I’m taking you to Muffet’s!”

“Blue, calm down,” Jewel laughed as he tried to pull her, unsuccessfully. “I’m supposed to be treating you.”

“B-but!”

“No buts, mister. You might not see what you did as a big deal, but it really was. If it wasn’t for you, Dream wouldn’t have figured out what he needed to, and Error wouldn’t have given him the final piece to the puzzle. Besides… none of you know what exactly happened anyway… and what you did…”

Blueberry stopped and looked at her. That sad face… now he felt bad. “Fine,” he sighed.

“You know… if you don’t want Muffet’s, I can take you somewhere else. There’s a whole multiverse to explore. I can even take you to a human restaurant. If… you don’t mind people staring,” she admitted. “Could probably pass you off as a cosplayer with the armor,” she muttered softly under her breath.

“Oh, do you watch anime?” he asked. “Undyne’s mentioned cosplaying before!”

Jewel chuckled a little. “I used to, back in the day. Haven’t touched it in years.”

“You know, I could introduce you to Undyne! I’m sure she’d love to show you some anime.”

“Eh,” her smile wavered. “I’m picky, I’ma be honest. Besides, Error’s got me on a binge right now of Undernovela. Kinda don’t like to binge more than one thing at a time.”

“Oh, he’s showing you that too?”

“Too?” she rose a brow.

“Yeah, it… It’s a long story,” Blueberry said softly as he rubbed the back of his neck.

Jewel watched him for a moment before forcing a smile on her face. “So, what do you want for lunch? I’ll try and pick a good place.”

“Well, the MAGNIFICENT SANS makes the world’s best tacos!” he bragged.

“Oh, really?” she smiled. “Most Papyrus’ make Italian food, strange to have you favor Mexican. What’s your favorite kind? Chicken, beef, fish?”

Blueberry then blinked a little. “What? Fish… tacos?”

Jewel then blinked. “Oh, right…” she sweated. “Monsters don’t… use animal products. You guys have magic food…”

“A-animal products?” Blueberry paled, not liking that.

“Yeah. Uh… humans can’t just… make food. So along with growing it, we… raise animals and kill them for food.”

“You… you what…?” A horrified look plastered on his face, tears started lining his eyes. “H-how…h-how does that even work? D-don’t they…. d-dust?”

Oh… oh no… She sighed a little. “No. Monsters are the only ones who dust. Animals, like humans, don’t… do that. We’re more… well… It’s hard to explain without getting graphic… and I don’t think you can handle it. Most people can’t… They just choose not to think about it when they eat…”

“But… but why? Why do you… have to… kill things?”

“Because we can’t grow things in winter like you guys can. Because of famine, disease… a lot of things monsters don’t have to worry about. It’s… not really that different than growing a plant in a garden to pluck it.”

“But animals have souls like us, right??”

Jewel rubbed the back of her neck. “I… can’t answer that,” she said softly. “Humans can’t see souls… I mean… I can, but I’m weird… and I’ve never… tried to look at an animal’s soul before… but I assume they do, Blue.”

“Then… then how can you..? It’s…”

“It’s how life on the surface is, Blue. I assume monsters did it too before the Core was introduced, right? Animals do it to each other. Some eat grass, others hunt the grass-eaters.”

“It… it doesn’t make it… make it right…”

Jewel sighed a little. “All right… Definitely vegan for you.”

Blue looked confused, though the sadness from the conversation still lingered. “Vegan?”

“No animal products. No meat, milk, eggs, etc. Just plants.”

“Sounds… I don’t know… I-I like my tacos… but to use real animals in them…”

“They have vegan tacos. I’m… not a fan, but…”

“So… you eat… animals?”

“Yeah,” she said softly. “I’m not opposed to it. I’m already limited in what I can eat, so…”

“Wait… you’re… limited?” he questioned. “What do you mean?”

“I mean… I’m allergic to certain foods. Some can actually kill me, believe it or not.”

“Food can DO THAT??”

Jewel chuckled softly. “Yes, Blue, it can.”

“How?? I-I don’t…!” he was so confused.

“It’s just how my body reacts to certain things. Like strawberries. I don’t even have to eat them. I just have to be near them and they close my throat, so I can’t breathe. It doesn’t take long, just a few seconds of exposure.”

“I-Is there anything dangerous here??” he quickly asked, looking around.

Jewel chuckled a little. “Easy, Blue,” she said softly as she put her hands on his shoulders, forcing him to look back up at her. “Strawberries are the worst for me unless I eat something. It’s the only thing environmental I have to worry about. And monsters don’t have them down here. Though… you did mention Muffet… does she still sell baked goods? Cuz that’s where I’d have to worry.”

“Y-yeah,” he said softly. “I don’t… know about strawberries though…”

“You guys might have an equivalent though… probably a good idea to not… ya know.”

“R-right,” he sweated. Good thing they didn’t go to Muffet’s then… “Well, now I’m thoroughly freaked out… you had a place in mind?”

“Well… I don’t really know good the food is… but I do know a few vegan places in the multiverse. But… are you going to be okay with me not ordering vegan?”

Blueberry shivered a little at the thought. “I-I suppose… I can’t ask you to change because I’m uncomfortable.”

“Well… I mean, you could, but it’d kind of be rude,” she tried with a small smile.

Blueberry tried to smile a little at the attempt, but he couldn’t get the idea out of his mind.

Jewel watched him for a moment before she went over and picked him up suddenly, throwing him onto her back, causing the tiny skeleton to grab on so he didn’t fall. “C’mon you,” she grinned at him. “You’ll feel better with food in you. We can discuss all this stuff later.” Before he could answer, she teleported them away.

To say Blueberry was surprised with the establishment was an understatement. It wasn’t like Muffet’s at all. It was nice, modest but definitely on the higher end of things. At least in comparison to what he was used to. He did have to have Jewel point out the vegan menu for him, though, and his eyes focused on the vegan tacos they indeed had. Fine, if he was going to compare human food, might as well be his favorite and specialty!

“Hello,” the waitress came over with a bright smile. “Can I get you anything or are we ready to order?”

“Greetings human server!” Blueberry grinned and Jewel sweated as the gazes around them shifted to them. “I, the MAGNIFICENT SANS, wish to try your vegan tacos!”

The waitress blinked and looked over at Jewel who had a bit of an embarrassed blush.

“He’s a method actor,” she muttered softly, which caused the waitress to chuckle sympathetically.

“Got it,” she whispered. “Anything to drink, sir?” she asked.

“Water?” he blinked, confused.

“Get him a peach tea, too,” Jewel smiled at her.

“All right, and you ma’am?”

“Grilled chicken over rice with sweet tea.”

“Thank you, I’ll be right back with your drinks,” she smiled as she took the menus and walked away.

Blueberry stared at Jewel for a moment, which caught her attention. “What?”

“Oh, um…” he tried to hide the blue dusting his cheeks. “You just… did I do something wrong?”

Jewel blinked a little. “What makes you say that?”

“That you… you lied to her.”

Jewel tilted her head before realizing, “Oh! You’re talking about the method actor line.”

“Yeah,” he said softly. “Why?”

“Blue, look around,” she said softly as they both glanced about. “We’re in an AU where everyone’s human. Calling someone “human” is kind of rude, let alone, “human server.” That’d be like someone just calling you monster or skeleton.”

“I… guess I never thought about it,” he realized, his thoughts racing. “Is that why you were embarrassed?”

“A little,” she said softly, stopping as the waitress dropped off the drinks with a breadbasket.

“Is there anything else I can get for you while you wait?”

“No, we’re good for now, thanks,” Jewel smiled, watching her walk away.

“So… I… embarrass you?”

Jewel blinked and turned back to Blueberry, who was fidgeting.

“We… don’t have to do this…”

“Blue, it’s not like that,” she said with a sigh. “Though, really, I never thought the Magnificent Sans would be so easily downhearted.”

“Well… you don’t like me and I embarrass you,” he muttered softly.

“Blue, none of that is true,” she firmly stated, her tone making him look back up at her. “Look, I know what Error said… and he’s kind of a jerk when he wants to be, best friend or not. Do you really want to get into this now?”

“Well… yeah… I’m confused. You act nice but then you…”

Jewel sighed a little, her hands folding in front of her. “I don’t hate you, or your world, Blue. It’s just… the thought of… you’re exhausting to think about,” she admitted, trying to be nice about it. “Your overwhelming energy is just impossible for me to keep up with. We’ve barely spent any time together and I already feel like I need a nap,” she sweated a little. “But at the same time, it’s infectious… I can’t… help but want to smile around you. And I did tell Error that I didn’t like UnderSwap… it hasn’t been my favorite AU so he wasn’t… fully lying… but Ink pointed out something I had neglected. There was a whole side I wasn’t seeing. All I ever saw was the super sweet side of you, where you’re literally bouncing off the walls with positive energy, the times you act like an overgrown child… and it just didn’t appeal to me. But I wasn’t going to let your world perish just because I’m not a fan, ya know? I don’t believe in that kind of thing. Other people love you, and I’ll keep protecting your world so you can have all your friends, even if we never get along…”

Blueberry was silent as he listened. It wasn’t easy to hear, he had to admit, but at least she was being honest with him. “So…” he started after a long, awkward silence, “You… don’t think we can be… friends?”

Whether he was trying to or not, that really hit somewhere in her. He had this honesty about him that was rare in the world and it… just brought back so many bad memories. “I… didn’t say that,” she said softly. “I just… wanted you to know that even if we aren’t, I’m not going to just… let things happen, ya know?”

“So… are you a protector then? Like Ink, Dream and me?”

“Oh, god, Ink put that in your head too…”

“He… did say you hated it when he called you one,” he sweated a little. “But that’s… what it sounds like to me.”

“I don’t go out of my way to save people from everything,” Jewel said softly. “Like… I can’t stop Frisk or Chara from doing bad things if they choose… that’s just how your worlds work and if I change that, then I’m changing how your world is… I’m not… I can’t do that, Blue. It’s not within my power. I can reset worlds, fix them if they get too broken or if something unnatural happens to them.”

“Like if Error came back to my world again…”

“Yeah…” she said softly.

“Error told me that’s how you met,” he fidgeted a little. “That… my brother doesn’t remember… I don’t understand…”

Jewel sighed a little, taking a sip of her drink. “I don’t want to step on your brother’s toes here, Blue. Last thing I need is him hating me too. He’s already going to hate me for all of this, I can feel it,” she sweated a little. “But…” she sighed. “I suppose some things can’t be avoided…”

“Why would you think my brother would hate you?”

“Because he’s like Classic Sans. Just like you’re like Classic Papyrus. In fact, I think your brother’s even more protective over you due to the Swap effect of your world. There’s… a lot going on behind the scenes you can’t see, but your brother, Classic, and others can. There’s… so much in the world, in the multiverse… and I don’t think it’s fair you’re kept in the dark,” she admitted, “But it’s not my place, Blue.”

“Are you saying… my brother’s been lying to me?”

“Not… lying… but omission. He’s just not telling you everything. And as an older sibling, I get that.”

Blue perked up a little at that. “You have a younger sibling?”

“I… I did…”

Blue’s energy fell the second he heard that. “Oh… Oh, human… I…” He started to get frantic, he didn’t know how to help. He couldn’t even remember her name, he knew he heard it from them before, but it had been a week!

“Relax, Blue,” he heard in that soft, sad voice that just wrenched at his soul. “It’s… been a long time. It’s not your fault,” she tried smiling at him, but even he could tell it was forced. “You can’t help something you don’t know. And it’s not like the fact having siblings is rare,” she half-chuckled.

“I… I just… I can’t imagine… losing Papy…” Tears started to line his eyes. His brother annoyed him to no end with how lazy he was, but he was everything to him. He worried about him every day, it was why he was always on him to do the menial things around the house! Why he harassed him about going to Muffet’s all the time!

Blueberry was snapped from his thoughts when he felt arms wrap around him. He didn’t even notice that she had gotten up and slid into his side of the booth. He was honestly stunned. He thought that… and the hug was so warm…

“I can’t promise you that nothing will happen,” she started, “But I know for a fact Papyrus will always be there for you, Blue. That he loves you with everything he is. And you don’t have to worry about losing him right now. How long do you monsters live for anyway?” she smiled softly at him. “Even if your lifespans are about the same as humans, there’s still a long way to old age, right? Plenty of time to try and break him of his lazy and bad habits.”

Blueberry stared up at her, his big blue eyes lined with unshed tears. He then couldn’t help but smile a little. “Heh, you kind of reminded me of Papy right there. No real promise of anything, but a lazy answer with vague implications.”

Jewel chuckled a little. “Well, there’s too many things that could happen in, what, sixty years?” she smiled down at him. “Can’t give specifics, Blue, I’m not a fortune teller.”

He was really surprised when she started wiping away at the tears in his eyes with her sleeve, with how gentle she was despite the fact he was all bone, he wouldn’t have felt it too much if she was a little rougher.

“Would… would it hurt too much if I asked about your sibling?” he asked gently. He had this morbid curiosity about it now… with how gentle she was…

He noticed her expression fall, just slightly, as she tried to hide it from him. But the light left her eyes and she avoided looking at him. He recognized it…

“Have you talked to Error about it?” he asked.

She turned back, looking at him confused. “Why would I talk to Error about my brother?”

“Because… he looked just like that when I asked him about his Papyrus…”

“So you and Error do have a history,” she realized just then.

Blueberry fidgeted a little. “A-a bit… It’s… not my favorite thing to talk about…”

“My brother’s not mine to talk about either,” she admitted softly.

“Then, can we… trade?” he tried. “I’ll tell you about Error if you tell me about your brother.”

She chuckled a little. “You realize I could get it out of Error too, probably.” When his face fell, she gently rubbed his skull. “All right, just for you, Blue. Don’t expect deep details though, all right?”

He blinked as she did this, watching her rise and go back to her side of the booth. Why did he suddenly feel a little colder? “So… uh… tell me about your brother,” he tried, prying gently.

“Heh,” she half chuckled. “His name was Bo. Or that’s what I called him. He wasn’t even four years younger than me but I practically raised him.”

“Even Papy and I have a bigger age gap than that. How could you raise him when you were just a baby bones yourself? What about your parents?”

“Dad didn’t give a damn,” she said softly with a shrug. “Not until Bo came around anyway. I was happier before, he was a mean bastard. Accused my mom of trapping him with my brother, like forget I even exist, kind of thing. Bo was the only good thing to come out of any of it. Eventually, mom just became numb to everything. I mean, she tried at the beginning but she just… gave up. She basically went to work, made money, came home and went to bed or just mentally checked out. I had to feed Bo all the time. At least at that point, when dad would come around it wasn’t either of us that got his wrath when the dishes weren’t done or some other bullshit. I wasn’t tall enough to reach the sink, even with a chair. Still, I caught on faster than most kids should.”

Blueberry sunk a little in his seat. He didn’t realize… “I-I’m sorry… I didn’t… know it was… You don’t… have to…”

“My parents sucked, no doubt about that,” she chuckled hollowly. “I guess the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree,” she sighed, leaning back. “That’s… my other issue with you, Blue. You remind me too much of him, back then. That smile, the big blue eyes… before he started hating me. Can’t say I blame him, but it still hurts…”

Blueberry stared up at her, eyes strained with thought. Being around him brought back bad memories? How could he help with that? “I… I don’t know how he could hate you,” he tried, but she cut him off.

“Blue, you don’t know me. And even I can admit I’m not the same person I was then, even if you did. What you see now isn’t how I was then.”

“I don’t believe that!” he then protested. “You were far too gentle with me! You act like a good elder sister!”

Jewel was honestly taken aback by that. Her fist clenched atop of the table, unnerving Blueberry a little. “Blue… stop. Not everyone is worth your kindness.”

“I don’t believe that either! I believe everyone can be a good person if they choose to be! All you have to do is try! Even if you don’t think you were a good person then, isn’t that proven now? You’re trying to be a good person now, aren’t you?”

He grew anxious as he waited for her response, but when he saw a couple of tears dripping off of her chin onto her arm, he didn’t know what to feel. “H-human?”

“Jewel… my name is Jewel…” she muttered, lifting her hand to wipe her face.

“Jewel… what’s wrong? I-is it something I said?”

“Yeah, it is…” she muttered softly. “You don’t… you don’t know how long it’s been… since someone actually… believed in me… and you don’t even… even know me…”

It started to click for the tiny Blueberry. What she meant before… what he had done for her… “Of course I believe in you,” he smiled genuinely. “I believe in everyone. But you’re also special. I might not know you personally, but you’re friends with Ink, who’s a good friend of mine. Besides, you got Error to care about you,” he said, though there was a hint of jealousy in his voice. “That’s a feat in of itself.”

It wasn’t missed by her, that tone shift in his voice. “I take it Error didn’t respond well to your usual charm, huh?”

“Ha…” he hollowly spoke, “No… no not really… I suppose it’s my turn now, huh?”

“If you’re comfortable.”

“I made a promise,” Blueberry reassured. “Error… destroyed my world. He kept me aside to make me fight Papy, using my soul as a point of control… Do you know what that is to a monster?” he asked her.

“I’m more in tune with souls than most humans. Believe me, I’m well acquainted with possession… Error’s tried it with me.”

“He’s tried to use your soul? I didn’t know if he could do it with humans.”

“I still don’t know if he can,” she admitted. “I’m just not… well, possess-able anymore.”

“Any more?” Blueberry asked, intrigued.

Jewel chuckled. “Maybe I’ll work with you on a few things if you want,” she offered. “But, can I ask more about this whole thing with you and Error?”

“Right,” he sighed a little. Though now he was excited. If Error couldn’t take control of him anymore… “Well, he couldn’t beat Papy, so he kidnapped me. I tried to win him over with friendship… I mean, he genuinely seemed like he needed one. I thought we were getting along… he was showing me all kinds of things, Undernovela, stuff about his past… did you know he could pull up timelines and show you things from his own history? It’s… strange…”

“Well, I figured he had to do something to pull up Undernovela in the “episode” format he had, but… no. He hasn’t really talked to me about his past. But I never asked either. Maybe I should… he keeps probing me now,” she laughed a little.

“He’ll take everything you give him and not give back unless you push. He likes to apologize with chocolate…”

“I got that,” she chuckled. “I’ve eaten more with him than I think I’d ever eat on my own.”

“But…” Blueberry sighed. “He thought I was faking… I genuinely started to like him, getting to know him. But he started lashing out, saying I was messing with him, pretending to get him to lower his guard. He then brought out the soul of the human from my world. He was going to destroy it, so I… I… I used what I had. I used his weaknesses that I learned to save them. He left me alone in the anti-void…” Blueberry felt his eye twitch, a scar from his time there, the small error code popping up as he quickly pressed against his eye.

Jewel blinked a little, noticing it. “Blue, what was… how long were you there?” she asked worriedly.

“I… I don’t know,” he answered, but he smiled at her as it faded, pulling his hand down. “Time doesn’t flow there, right? It explains why I couldn’t’ tell how long things lasted.”

“Blue… you can’t go back, you know that right?” she then brought up. “If you go back it’ll go right back to making that worse.”

His face fell a little, a worried look now plastered on his face. “Y-you… know about this?”

“Blue, I live in the anti-void right now. You think I wouldn’t explore it?”

“There’s nothing there to explore?” he questioned.

“Not what I mean, I…” she sighed a little. “I’ll show you later, okay? I want to take a look at that later too, okay?”

“O..okay,” he said softly but looked at her worriedly. “If… if you live there… how are you not..?” he questioned.

“I’m immune to a lot of things, Blue,” she explained softly. “I’ll give you more of a rundown later, okay? In private.”

He could understand that. He glanced around a bit more, noticing people still staring. Not that it bothered him. “You know… there is one thing…” Blueberry started as he looked back up at her. When she looked at him questioningly, he continued. “Since you live there and all… how did I get back to my world? I can’t teleport like you and I can’t make portals. My brother wasn’t in our world either, and I had the human’s soul. They couldn’t reset… but when we woke up, we were in our rooms, at home.”

Jewel sweated a little, and Blueberry caught on. “That was you?”

“Don’t tell Error, okay?” she pleaded. “I don’t think he realizes how much I messed with things he did before we met.”

“What do you mean? He said you helped him.”

“I… do… sort of,” she rubbed the back of her neck. “I point him to world that are… already dying. Ones that won’t survive, even with Ink’s help, ya know? There’s a limit to what the universe can handle and despite what people think, Error’s work is necessary. Just like we have to die eventually to allow new life the room to grow. It’s not a nice thought, but it’s necessary.”

Blueberry seemed to contemplate what she said. “It’s… still worth trying to save them,” Blueberry spoke up.

“If it’s possible, yes. I try and corral Error as best I can, but you know how he is. I can’t outright stop him.” She probably could… but that wouldn’t be good for the world as a whole. “It’s hard to stop death, it’s a natural part of life.”

“But there’s things like medicine to keep it from coming sooner,” Blueberry pointed out.

“Oh, you wanna get philosophical?” Jewel chuckled. “Blue… you literally just answered yourself. Sooner. Not stopping it. It will still come eventually. Putting a Band-Aid on a problem may help, but it may not. It depends on what the problem is. Everything is a case by case basis, but there are two constants in life. Things will be born, and things will die. I mean, look at what we did with Error. I’ve saved your world from him, twice. Because it wasn’t your world’s time to die yet. I’ve done it to a few others… and I’ve tried to save others that were ready to die and made things worse. Nothing but Error would fix those worlds now… even Ink’s abilities and mine, nothing would bring it back… there’s a balance to the worlds that needs to be upheld.”

Blueberry didn’t know if he liked that, however. “You wouldn’t be so casual about if you watched your world die…”

Jewel looked down at him. “My world’s gone, Blue.”

Blueberry swallowed thickly. “I… I didn’t know…”

“I know. It’s been gone for a long time. I’m not really… concerned about it, honestly. Kind of sucked.”

“But it was your home!”

“Was it, Blue?” she sighed. “My family was long dead by the time it disappeared. I tried to make friends again, I tried to help people with my magic… but the fact I had magic was enough to make people lash out at me. It never changed, even after a hundred years… I didn’t belong there. My home is in the code… and now with Error, I suppose.”

“In… the code?” he questioned.

“Part of the explanation later,” she said softly, before turning her head. Blueberry was confused as to why she grew silent but stopped when he noticed her looking toward the waitress coming back. She dropped their food down, and Blueberry had to admit it looked good.

“Anything else I can get you?” the waitress once again asked.

“No thank you,” Jewel smiled.

“All right. I’ll be back to check on you in a bit,” she smiled before walking off.

Jewel then turned to the tiny skeleton, smiling warmly at him. “How about we stop talking about all this depressing stuff and take a break to chow down!”

“Sounds good to me! Bon appetite human! Er, I mean, Jewel!”


	19. You're Blue Now part 2

# Chapter 19 – You’re Blue Now part 2

The tacos had looked good, but Blueberry felt himself let down by the flavor. Nothing compared to his own, of course, but the beans in them had a weird texture and got caught in his teeth. It wasn’t dignified to be pulling things from his molars like this. He caught himself on more than one occasion looking over at Jewel’s plate. Despite what she said about not eating, she didn’t really rush to finish either. It had a nice color to it, the rice looked plenty appetizing, though the chicken… he felt himself wanting to know. It didn’t look too different than what they had in the Underground… he had seen plenty like it. Did that mean their food was made to be a version of it? So many questions ran through his mind.

“Uh… Jewel?” he found himself asking before his mind could catch up.

“Yeah, Blue?”

“Can I… can I try yours?” he then asked, a cyan blush powdering his cheeks.

Jewel blinked a little. “I mean, I don’t have a problem with it. But are you sure? You know it’s…”

“Yeah, I know… but it… looks good,” he admitted to himself. “And not… that different from something I’ve seen back home. So now I… I don’t know…”

Jewel sighed a little, but she smiled at him. “Blue, I don’t care if you eat off of my plate. I’m just worried about your reaction. You’re a pure little bean.”

Blueberry blinked rapidly at her word choice. “Little bean?”

Jewel chuckled. “Don’t worry about it. Humans have weird sayings. Would cinnamon roll be better?”

Blueberry looked confused. “You’re… calling me weird foods. I mean, I know everyone calls me Blueberry outside of my world, but at least that has to do with my clothes being blue!”

“And your sweetness, apparently,” Jewel chuckled. “Though I’ma be honest, every time I get a blueberry, they’re tart, so…”

Blueberry blinked, but then started laughing. “Is that why you don’t like me?” he joked back.

Jewel chuckled a little and pushed her plate forward. “If you really want to, Blue, go ahead.”

Blueberry smiled at her, before looking at her plate. The rice he had no problem with and dug right into that, his eyes lighting up as he closed his mouth around his fork. “Wowzers! This is so good!” he exclaimed after he swallowed his bite.

Jewel chuckled. “Seasoned rice is the best in my opinion,” she smiled at him.

“You mean it comes unseasoned?” he blinked.

“Wow… Okay, I’m going to have to broaden your culinary horizons there, Blue.”

Blueberry’s eyes widened a little, hopeful. “Does… that mean… you’ll come visit more?”

Jewel let out a contented sigh as a smile graced her lips. “If you can keep the energy down a bit, I can definitely make an effort.” She had a slight teasing inflection in her voice, but she was genuine in her offer.

It was all he could to keep from shouting out in the crowded restaurant, trying to keep his enthusiasm in check. “You don’t know how happy I am to hear you say that. Since Ink brought you up, I’ve been looking forward to meeting you, and then, after what you did for Dream-!”

“Huh? What I did for Dream?”

Blueberry couldn’t stop his grin. “You gave him hope! To see someone like him! He’s been running on empty, he keeps trying to help everyone, but he doesn’t really let others in, ya know? He’s trying to spread as much positivity as he can, but he hasn’t been really feeling positive himself.”

Jewel let out a small sigh, a half-smile now on her face. “Well… I don’t know if I’m exactly like him, but I get the fatigue part. I can try and be an ear for him, at the very least. I do wanna meet him and thank him for his help. And, uh…” she looked back at Blueberry. “Seriously for a moment… can you please keep that bit to yourself?”

Big blue eyes looked up at her confused. “What part?”

“With… what he did. It’s… not what you think for starters and I rather…” she looked uncomfortable. “My magic’s always been a serious thing for me. Humans don’t understand it at all, even healing magic gets you in trouble, believe it or not. And… well… I don’t want to give Nightmare any advantages here. I don’t want him to know how my magic works.”

“But, if your magic is positivity, he can’t use it.”

“It’s not though, Blue. Granted, positive energy is part of it but so is negative. Nightmare can feed off of me in seconds, just like Dream could. It’s complicated and I rather… not go into it. It’s weird, even for monsters… maybe especially for monsters.”

Blueberry looked even more confused, but he wholeheartedly agreed. “I promise I won’t say anything. I kind of wish I knew why I was keeping it a secret.”

“Maybe… later, Blue. No offense, but I don’t exactly know you that well. And I won’t tell Error details and he’s my best friend, so…”

“I can understand that. We did just meet after all. But if you need to talk to someone, I’m all ears! Well, so to speak, I’m all bone really,” he laughed.

Jewel chuckled softly. “Appreciate it, Blue.”

Blue watched her grow quiet again as she sipped her tea. He still hadn’t really tried his so he decided to take the plunge and try what she had ordered him. His eyes lit up. “Wowzers! Papy would love this! It’s so sweet!”

Jewel chuckled. “Well, you automatically get a free refill. We can get it to go if you wanna give him some.”

“Can we, really?”

“Yeah, sure,” she grinned. “So, does he drink ketchup like Sans does?”

“No, he drinks honey. I’m…” he blushed. “I’m the one who likes ketchup,” he admitted softly. “I try not to drink it.”

Jewel chuckled a little. “Nothing wrong with it, Blue.”

“Would you drink ketchup?”

“Nah, too chunky,” she chuckled. “I do like it with my food though, mustard too. I like honey on my biscuits, but I don’t like it in my tea, oddly enough. Everyone says it’s good and I just can’t handle it,” she smiled at him.

Blueberry blinked a little. “Why’d you give me a list?”

“Eh, just what I’ve realized. Classic drinks ketchup like you, your brother, obviously, and Red likes to drink mustard. I’m waiting for one of you to drink relish and horseradish sauce to complete condiment bingo. Or, ya know, hot sauce,” she laughed lightly.

Blueberry’s face paled a little, but he chuckled weakly. “That’s… uh… wowzers…”

Jewel chuckled earnestly at his reaction. “Chill, Blue. Though if you want ketchup I’m sure we can ask the waitress.”

“No!” he quickly shouted, making people turn and stare. He couldn’t help the blush that crept onto his face. “I’m… it’s a bad vice, I’m trying not to.”

“All right,” Jewel smiled. “I get that. I was kind of like that with alcohol.”

Blueberry looked up at her. “You used to drink?”

“Eh, well… complicated,” she smiled. “I mean, I started real young, like twelve,” she chuckled. “Legal drinking age for humans is twenty-one where I lived. Mostly holiday things where my family would watch me. But… eh, I’ve always been resistant to alcohol. Doesn’t really work the way it’s supposed to for me. So I would drink more and heavier stuff to get the effect. But as my magic became active, it made it harder for me to feel it, so I drank more and more… and now it just won’t work unless I probably clean out the entire bar,” she shrugged. “I just gave up trying. I mean, there’s no point. I can regenerate my liver if it gets damaged, but the taste alone isn’t worth it, ya know? I mean, some drinks do taste good so I’ll enjoy it for the taste, but eh, can’t drink for the “fun” of it, ya know?”

“Well… I don’t really drink so I don’t know what “fun” there is in it, but my brother gets drunk a lot. It’s not fun for me to pick him up. He’s so much bigger than me and dragging him home is just… frustrating!”

“I mean, you have blue magic, right? Why don’t you just use that?”

“I’m not as good with it as Papy. I can turn you blue, but I can’t use it to move you around like he can.”

“I see,” she said softly. “Well, if I’m around I’ll drag his butt for ya,” she smiled.

Blueberry chuckled a little. “Well, thanks I guess.”

Jewel chuckled and watched him for a bit as they sat there. “Ya know, my food’s getting cold…”

“Oh! Right! Sorry!”

Blueberry turned his attention back to the chicken. He almost just pushed it back but he couldn’t help the curiosity. He had been stalling for time, he knew that… but if he didn’t try it now, she would probably eat all of it! He took a piece of the sliced chicken on his fork and hesitantly brought it to his mouth. He took a breath and quickly put the chicken in his mouth. He didn’t know what he expected, but he was surprised at how familiar it tasted. It wasn’t far off from food he had back home, that he cooked with. Chicken… tacos… She mentioned that before. Could he have had something similar in one of his taco variations?

“Not quite the soul-destroying meal you thought it would be, is it?”

“No,” he admitted, embarrassment coursing through him. “It… tastes similar to something I’ve had back home too.”

Jewel chuckled. “I get the hesitation, Blue, I do. I had a crisis of conscious once upon a time too. But it’s just something that’s part of life. I can’t personally go vegan or anything due to dietary issues. Too many things I’m allergic or sensitive to are involved for me to have a proper balanced diet. I can’t make up for the vitamins and other things I’d miss by going meatless, even with supplements, because they make supplements with things I’m allergic to,” she smiled softly at him.

“Well, you can always come visit me. I’ll make you whatever you want! All our food is magic after all, no killing involved! And we have stuff like this so I doubt you’d have any real issues!” he offered wholeheartedly.

Jewel chuckled. “I suppose that is true… but I’d hate to put you out like that.”

“Oh, hardly! I love cooking for everyone! You can ask everyone in Snowdin!”

She smiled. “I suppose I could. But only if you let me cook for you too. But… you know I’d bring Error sometimes, right? I can’t leave him out.”

Blueberry’s face fell a bit. “I… I don’t mind,” he responded hesitantly.

“Blue, don’t lie to me.”

Blueberry sighed. “I want to be his friend, I really do… I want to apologize. I tried before but he just snapped at me.”

“I’ll talk to him,” Jewel then offered. “See if I can work around what’s ailing him a bit. It would do him good to have more friends than just his puppets.”

“He still has those?”

“Yeah,” she chuckled. “He made me one of him.”

“Really?” Blueberry couldn’t help but laugh a little.

“Yeah. He’s been trying to teach me to crotchet. He offered to try and teach me to knit, but he admitted he’s not that good.”

“He’s still trying to knit?” Blueberry asked, surprised. “I thought he would have given that up after our fight!”

Jewel tilted her head. “Were you the one teaching him?”

“Yeah,” he grinned. “I really enjoyed it! Maybe… maybe if he wants to be friends again, I can teach both of you!”

Jewel chuckled. “Well, don’t expect much out of me. I’m ten times worse than Error,” she laughed at herself.

“No one can be as bad as Error,” Blueberry laughed. But he couldn’t lose the smile even after they calmed down. “Hey… Um,” he hesitated. “C-can you split this with me?” he then asked, pointing at the food. “I really, really don’t like their tacos,” he sweated.

Jewel chuckled. “Sure, Blue.”

It was strange, the way Jewel paid as they left. The green money was definitely not something he had expected as they walked out. The waitress was kind enough to remove the tacos from the bill since he barely touched them, and they even got dessert! Blueberry was carrying an extra piece of cake home for his brother with his refill of peach tea. Jewel was carrying her sweet tea refill as they walked. It was weird for him, since they teleported into the AU but he just assumed they were going somewhere more out of the way. He was noticing more humans staring at him, not that it ever really bothered him.

“Am I really so unusual?” he asked her.

“Well, you’re not exactly a human skeleton,” she chuckled a little, “But you’re different enough to gain attention. Plus, armor and the scarf is definitely not a normal human fashion choice,” she smiled at him. “Plus you’re adorably short.”

“I’m not that short!” he pouted.

Jewel chuckled a little and rubbed his skull as if she would muss his hair. “You’re adorable, Blue.”

Blueberry looked up, his eyes turning into stars as he looked up at her. “Does that mean I won you over?”

“Dude, I agreed to come over so you could feed me,” she laughed a little. “Yes. Just no friendship bracelets, okay?” she grinned at him. “I’m breaking so many personal rules right now,” she sighed with a chuckle.

“What do you mean?”

“Eh, I started breaking them when I met Error,” she explained as they walked down another side street. “I promised myself no friends after I realized everyone I got close to got hurt somehow, no matter what I did. Be they human or animal… I hadn’t really met a monster until Error and Ink, really. Not on personal terms. But, after you’re trapped in self-imposed isolation for years, you kind of get a weakness for talking to someone. Error just… happened to literally worm his way to my soul. With his strings, ya know how it goes.”

“Why did you feel the need to make such a promise? They got hurt… how?” Blueberry asked cautiously.

“Eh… I wasn’t the greatest person, Blue,” she admitted. “Like Error, or even Nightmare. I was… hell, humans called me a monster. Not saying it excuses anything, but I lost a lot and I just… got tired of being the victim, so I started lashing back. I only had one friend outside of my brother when I was younger. I lost him because even at thirteen I had enemies. I didn’t really get close to people after that. I worked with them to do all kinds of horrible things. I mean, hell, I robbed banks for a living at one point. People worked with me because my magic made it really hard to stop us. We kind of became infamous… but after I lost my brother, I just… well… I broke. Everything made no sense anymore. What was the point of all this power I had if I couldn’t protect the only person that mattered to me? I… broke out of my world,” she explained softly. “Got lost in the code.”

Blueberry was silent as she spoke, listening. They barely knew each other yet her she was opening up. Not that he really minded. It was nice that she trusted him enough to relay such information. “See? You wanted to change! I told you, all you have to do is try!” he grinned at her.

Jewel chuckled a little. “Yeah, I suppose your right. I really did try after that… not that there was anything I could do other than change my own thoughts…”

“Because you were trapped?” he asked. “But you said it was self-imposed.”

“It was the second time around,” she clarified. “The first time, well… Heh, a hundred years in a space with no time really messes with you.”

Blueberry stopped dead in his tracks, staring at her. “One-hundred YEARS??”

Jewel looked back and chuckled. “Yeah, for the first time, anyway.”

Blueberry was utterly blown away. “How do you even know?? You said time doesn’t flow, right? I don’t even think I spent a month in the anti-void!”

“I went back home,” she explained softly. “The date was burned into my brain when I left. So when I got back, and saw it was…” she quickly did the math in her head. “One-hundred and seven years, three months and seventeen days later, it was… a shock to say the least. I didn’t think it had been _that_ long.”

“But… you… you don’t look that old!”

Jewel chuckled. “I don’t age when time can’t flow, silly bean.”

“That’s just… wow… but, you made friends when you went back, right??” he bounced happily.

“Well, one. A little stray cat. We both kind of hunkered down in the same spot. It took me a while to readjust. Everything was so noisy, tech had advanced and I… well, I didn’t exist as far as the world was concerned. Well, not technically true. I turned into an urban legend, and not in the good way. People still told stories about the Magic Mafia, as they taken to calling us,” she laughed a little. “They made stories and made me to be out this horrible villain. Not that I could blame them… I definitely fit the role. It was a good thing I look so generic, but still… once I managed to get some money together I cut off my long hair and styled it a bit different to try and hide a bit better. It was… difficult. I managed to finally rent a cheap apartment, had my little kitty friend with me. I thought things were going good. I was making friends at work, or so I thought…”

“What happened?”

“Well… I…” she sighed. “I used my magic. There was this robbery going down. I knew how these things worked, I mean, hell I used to plan them. Someone was shot in the process before I got there. I… didn’t even use the same magic,” she admitted softly. “I used my barrier to keep the guy contained and tried using my healing magic on the wounded party. If I didn’t, they would have died. But… people turned on me, Blue. Healing magic of all things,” she laughed hollowly. “Humans still couldn’t get past that fear. I ran home, hiding in my crappy apartment. My cat was the only one who cared about the whole damn thing. Police eventually came knocking on my door, human version of the Royal Guard. I tried to pretend like I wasn’t home, probably a stupid move, but I just wanted to hold my cat. Stupid…” she muttered as her hand ran through her hair. “They busted down my door and apparently still believe in the stories of witches because one shouted “familiar” and pointed at my cat. I just remember being hit down with batons, I guess I should be glad they didn’t shoot me. My cat… wasn’t so lucky. He freaked out and hid. When a cop tried to scoop him up, he bit him, I mean, duh! I watched as he kicked my poor cat and stomped on him.”

“Oh… Jewel…” Blueberry put a hand on her arm as they walked.

“Wasn’t proud of it, but went back to old me for a moment. Killed the officers and just… ran back into the code. Isolated myself there… went back to working with the code and… just… existed. Eventually discovered the AUs and it was… something to distract myself, I suppose. Learned I could access the world codes and just… learned how to reset from there, I guess.”

Blueberry was silent as they walked. It was… more than he thought a person should go through. He had experience in the void of nothing that was the anti-void… he couldn’t imagine the code was much better if it acted the same. His feet came to a stop as his mind raced with all this new knowledge. And the fact she had positivity in her that Dream could feel?

“Hm? Blue?” she called as she felt him stop, his arm never having left her.

Tiny gloved arms wrapped around her core, still holding onto his takeout, but held firmly against her back. His face buried in her side.

“You didn’t deserve any of that!” he exclaimed in her side. “They were wrong! No member of the Royal Guard would be so callous! I’m so sorry you had to go through that, Jewel!”

“Heh,” she softly ran a hand over his skull while the other wrapped around him. “I kind of did, Blue. Ask your brother how karma works. Just because you decide to change doesn’t mean the bad things in your life are over. I did a lot of things and it’s still catching up to me. I’m still hurting people I care about… like Error, Ink, Sans, Red… Trying to make friends put Error in a bad spot, my trying to protect people hurt Ink and Sans… Red… I guess I put him through a few states of panic when I dealt with his brother… not to mention how I got hurt… that put all of you in a rough spot.”

“But that’s because we care about you! Well… more them than me and Dream, admittedly.”

“Well, I hope so, you knew nothing about me,” she smiled at him before crouching down, getting down to his level while squatting. “I’m really lucky to have a friend like you, Blue. You know… I’ve been afraid to tell most of this to people because I don’t want to lose them as friends.”

Blueberry looked down at her with a genuine smile. “I know we just met and all… but I’d never turn away a friend in need. You’re obviously not that same person anymore. You’ve changed into a good person! And I believe you can help Error do that too!”

A few tears lined her eyes. It had been a long time since anyone truly believed in her like Blueberry had. “Heh, Ink was right, I should’ve hung out with you a while ago.”

“Well, that’s because I’m THE MAGNIFICENT SANS! MWEHEHHHEHHEH!”

Jewel chuckled. “You are pretty SANSational.”

Blueberry then groaned. “Oh no, you do puns?”

Jewel chuckled. “Not normally. Mostly when I’m using Classic’s puppet with Error in shows,” she grinned. “Just couldn’t help that one. It’s true.”

“Well, I suppose you are correct!” he grinned at her.

She smiled and slowly stood up. “So… I’m sorry that I’m prying, I was pretty open but don’t think you have to be, okay? But… that error code in your eye earlier…”

The small Sans couldn’t help putting his hand up to his eye and rubbing it with the butt of his palm. “It’s… not that bad, honestly. It started doing it when I was in the anti-void. It would act up more there, but once in a while, it does flare-up. Mostly when I get upset.”

Jewel began to think, her mind running through a million possibilities. “How good is your brother with computers?” she asked.

Blueberry blinked rapidly. “Uh… I know he used to be really into it once upon a time, but he’s lost all motivation for science and stuff.”

Definitely familiar. “Would you be okay if I brought this up to him?”

“No! I don’t want to worry him!”

“Even if I could help you?”

Blueberry stared at her for a moment. “You… think you can fix it?”

“Well… I’m not sure. I’ll admit, despite living in something for over a hundred years, you don’t magically learn everything about it,” she joked with a smile. “I can… go to Classic or Red if you prefer. But I just wanted to ask so I can try and get some advice. But… this all depends on one thing though.”

“What’s that?”

“It’s… personal, Blue,” she warned. “I’d have to look directly into your code.”

“My… code?”

“The entire world has code since the multiverse is… well… computer-based, I suppose. I mean,” she turned and pulled open one of her floating windows in front of Blueberry. They were alone down this street, hence her taking it. “This is this world’s code.”

Blueberry’s eyes lit up with wonder as he looked at it. He tried to touch the screen but his hand just went through it.

“Heh, sorry, I’m the only one who can interact with it like this. Part of my powers now. Cool to look at though, right?”

“Yeah,” he said, his eyes becoming stars again before he focusing back on her. “So… you said you… had to look at my code?”

“Yeah. Which… is accessible through your soul,” she explained as she closed the window.

He turned into a blueberry right then as his face flushed.

“I don’t… have to actually touch it, or even have you expose it,” she clarified. “But that’s where your code is stored. Your soul is your entire being, so of course the code explaining you would be in there.”

“So… you’re just asking permission?”

“Right,” she smiled. “Kind of rude not to, ya know?”

“How… long would it take?” he asked.

“A while,” she admitted. “I’d like to copy your code and put it in a portable space. It can’t be edited there, just read. If I find a way to help you, I’d have to come and edit your code directly. But, I’d have to isolate the error causing the glitch in the first place.”

Blueberry then began to think about it. “Could… you fix Error?”

“No. Error’s fully corrupted, his code is what it is. You, however… well, I can’t do major things, but I can at least try and isolate the error in your code and keep it from spreading, stopping the flare-ups. Best case scenario I can remove it.”

Blueberry took a moment to consider the implications. He wasn’t nearly as smart as his brother… especially not with this kind of thing. But he never brought this up to him either. He was lucky that his flare-ups never really happened around him. He didn’t get upset often, but most of the time was around his brother. Maybe it waited until he let his guard down when he was in his room or at his puzzles, he didn’t know. But he didn’t want to worry him with it either…

“Okay,” Blueberry said, determination in his eyes.

Jewel smiled a bit. “C’mon, there’s a nice tree up this way I like to go and sit under. It’s private and we can do it there.” It would also give him time to back out if he changed his mind.

Blueberry followed her up to the tree, not realizing this was where she and Error had met up after her first time in UnderFell. When they had their first real talk. He just couldn’t tear his eyes from the sky. He had seen it earlier, obviously, but he was really taking it in now.

“I didn’t know above ground was so beautiful…”

“I know it’s not the same as living in it,” she spoke up, “But whenever you wanna come back, I’ll bring you with me. I like to come here and think. Error likes OuterTale, and the stars are pretty, but I grew up under the sun and I just… need it sometimes, ya know?”

“You’re not gonna get embarrassed bringing a loud skeleton?” he teased.

She chuckled. “Nah. Just don’t get offended if I come up with some lie to explain your appearance.”

“Deal!” Blueberry beamed at her.

“So… you wanna get this over with?” she offered.

“Yeah,” he agreed as he walked over, sitting beside her. “Is this gonna hurt or anything?”

With a chuckle, Jewel smiled, “No, you won’t feel anything. Might feel weird to see your stats on the screen though. It’s going to have everything about you.”

“So you’re going to know everything about me?” he blinked.

“Yeah. I know it’s more invasive, knowledge wise, than sharing your soul with someone, but I’ll cut out the bio bits if you want.”

“It’s okay. I trust you,” he smiled at her. “After all, you went and told me so much already. I don’t have anything to really hide,” he grinned. “I’m pretty much an open book, mwehehhehheh!”

Jewel chuckled a little before gently putting her hand on his chest. She tapped him, and it pulled up a window and Blueberry saw his name.

_Sans (Blueberry) – UnderSwap_

_Lv1_

_HP: 1_

_Atk: 1_

_Def: 1_

And it continued. He didn’t stare at it long as Jewel highlighted everything and opened another window, copying it over. She tapped him again and it closed. He blinked as she snapped her fingers and a tiny blue crystal formed in her hand. She touched it to the window and it collapsed into the crystal.

“Wowzers! What was that??”

“What, my crystals?” she chuckled.

“Can I see?” he asked.

“Sure,” she said as she passed him the small blue crystal. He noticed there was a blueberry etched into the top of it. He couldn’t help but laugh.

“Monogrammed it for me, huh?” he grinned at her.

“Well, gotta make it stand out a little, right? You don’t wanna know how many crystals I got.”

“You’re… not going to lose it, right?”

“Nah, I got a system,” she smiled. “Besides, I don’t normally save codes like this. You’re the only one.”

“I didn’t know you had crystals though. This is pretty,” he said as he examined it.

“Want one?” she offered.

“I couldn’t! They look expensive.”

Jewel laughed a little at him. “Blue, I make them!” she grinned. “It’s not hard, and believe me, you’re helping create a surplus.”

He tilted his head, confused. “Huh?”

Jewel chuckled, taking the code-infused crystal and snapping it away. Better safe so no one else could read that. “Blue, emotions make my crystals,” she smiled at him. “Remember when I said I’m not quite like Dream? I’m still an empath, and my magic is emotion-based. Blue crystals are positive emotions like happiness, red crystals are negative like anger, and purple are the ones in-between, like nervousness. And believe me, you’re giving me plenty to be happy about right now. It’s contagious.”

A light blue dusting appeared on his cheeks but he couldn’t help it as he beamed, his eyes turning to stars. “Really?”

“Yeah, and I can make it into any shape you want. Wanna see something that even Error hasn’t seen?” she grinned.

“Yes!”

Jewel summoned a decently sized crystal with a snap, holding it between her hands. She then started manipulating the crystal in front of him, turning it into various shapes, it phasing into liquid between the shapes.

“Wowzers!!”

She grinned a little. “Error’s only seen them pop out fully formed in the shape I want. It’s easier to do it beforehand, but it doesn’t take that much effort to do it in the open. Just as easy as you making your bones and stuff.”

“That’s amazing Jewel!”

“So, you know what you want?” she asked.

“I’m not sure,” he exclaimed, “There are so many possibilities.”

Jewel chuckled a little. “How about…” she started as she turned the crystal into a broach for his scarf. It was a diamond with the edges in the shape of intertwining bones with the delta rune inside of it. She went in and pinned it to his scarf. “There,” she smiled brightly at him.

Blueberry’s eyes went wide as he looked at the broach. “Thank you so much!” he beamed up at her.

Jewel chuckled. “You’re welcome, Blue. Now, come on,” she said, extending her hand to him as she stood up. “We should probably get you back home. It’s not like you to slack off, right?” she grinned.

“Oh! Wowzers, my break was over a while ago!” he just realized.

Jewel chuckled. “Yeah, but you were helping out a friend, so it counts, right?”

Blueberry grinned and grabbed her hand. “Right!!”


	20. You're Blue Now part 3

# Chapter 20 – You’re Blue Now part 3

Blueberry couldn’t help his grin as they returned to his Snowdin. He loved his new broach and he had an amazing day! He knew this day was going to be MAGNEFICENT!

“So… think your bro’s at home or asleep at his station?”

“Probably his station,” Blueberry sighed a bit. “But, at least he’s there, right?” he grinned, leading the way.

“You know, I could just teleport us there.”

“Nonsense! We should work off the food we ate!”

“You’re just saying that so your brother doesn’t realize you ate three pieces of cake.”

Blueberry sweated a little. “Y-yeah…”

“Surprised you’re handling the sugar as much as you are.”

“Well, you helped with that,” he grinned. “I got really excited about this broach!”

Jewel held her soft smile. “I’m really glad you like it, Blue.”

“Of course! Too bad my brother doesn’t like blue too much. You could make him one too!”

“Well, I can always make him a red one. Just because they’re created from negative emotions, doesn’t mean they have to represent that, ya know? You can be angry for good reasons. Like your friends being hurt and wanting to protect them.”

“Wouldn’t that technically qualify for purple then?” he asked, blinking.

“It’d create both. Anger is still classified as negative, even if it’s for good reasons. Just like fire’s dangerous whether it’s in a fireplace, a stove, or used to hurt someone.”

“I suppose that’s true. A useful tool but dangerous if misused.”

“Same can be said for negative emotions. Sadness is seen as negative too, but without it, how could you process the others?”

Blueberry tilted his head as he thought about it. “Wowzers, I never really thought about it like that. I mean, I know it’s natural to be sad, angry and all of that… but I never really thought about how everything was so…”

“Black and white?”

“Yeah. I mean, if you’re angry for a good reason, shouldn’t that be good then?”

“Well, there is a thing called righteous fury,” she chuckled. “But as far my powers are concerned, no. It’s labeled pretty clearly. But mixed emotions like that are why the colored crystals exist at all.”

“I’m confused.”

Jewel chuckled. “It’s okay. More of my crazy magic and their rules. I don’t think it applies to anyone besides me.”

It only took a moment longer to reach Papyrus’ station, where he was, indeed, asleep. He leaned on his desk, his arms folded with his head lazily resting on them. Blueberry huffed a little and walked over.

“PAPY!!” he shouted in his brother’s ear, but it didn’t seem to work. He put the drink and bag down before trying to pull at him. Nothing seemed to be working.

Jewel chuckled a little. “Hey, let me try something,” she said with a bit of a wink.

“Good luck,” Blueberry sighed.

Jewel put her drink down in the snow, might as well keep it cold, before picking up a bunch of the white powder in her hands. She walked behind the sentry stand and dumped it, and some more, into Papyrus’ hood. She then, with a wink, quickly pulled it forward.

“Holy fuck!!” Papyrus barked as he shot up, hitting his head atop of his station as the snow fell down his face, in his sockets and down his back.

His eye instantly started instantly glowing orange as he turned onto his assailant, grabbing Jewel’s soul without realizing with his magic, but he felt his magic shatter almost instantly as she simply stood there. He reacted in a second, grabbing her by her shirt and pinning her against a tree behind his station.

“Brother!” he heard a familiar scolding voice and he glanced back, seeing Blueberry standing there, disapproving with his hands on his hips. “How rude! She was just waking you up for me!”

Papyrus’ head was spinning as he glanced back to the human… he had barely noticed she was anything but, his mind flashing to the genocide run version of Chara… she didn’t look too far off, if not older.

“ _Ice_ to meet you,” she grinned at him. “I’m Jewel! _Snow_ sorry about the wake-up call, but your brother was having a _flurry_ of a time trying to rise you.”

Papyrus couldn’t help the smirk and snicker that started to come across his face as Blueberry groaned.

“I thought you said you didn’t normally pun!” he protested.

“I don’t, but I couldn’t pass that up!” Jewel laughed.

“Ugh, fine, but only because you’re laughing,” Blueberry pouted.

Papyrus slowly let her go, the puns won him over for the moment. “Sorry about the _cold_ reception,” smirking at his brother’s groan, “But who exactly are you? And why the hell am I covered in snow?” he asked as he shook his hoodie out.

“This is Jewel! The human friend of Ink’s I told you about!”

“The one you went to help?”

“Yup,” Jewel smiled. “I really owed your little bro for the assist, so I came to try and show him how much I appreciated the help. We just got back from lunch, a squirrel nabbed his.”

“Look, brother!” Blueberry grinned as he picked up the drink and the take-out bag. “I brought you some peach tea and some cake! Well, Jewel paid for it, I just carried it, mwehhehheh!”

“Peach tea?” he rose a brow.

“It’s like normal sweet tea, but with peach flavor. I figured Blue would like it but he wanted to share with you so he brought his refill back with him.”

“It’s really sweet, and since you have a sweet tooth, I thought you would enjoy something we don’t get down here!”

“…down here?” Papyrus quickly caught on, glancing back at Jewel.

“We went to an AU where the monsters are human instead,” she told him. “Pacifist run, don’t worry. And we were far enough away from “Snowdin” that we didn’t risk running into other versions of you. I like to go there to think, and I like the food.”

“And no one said anything? Monster in a human world?” his voice got dark.

“Nope,” Jewel smiled. “Blue’s too cute, a single line about him being an actor and poof~ Magic disguise,” she chuckled.

Papyrus seemed to calm down just a bit, though he didn’t know if he liked this. His brother went to AUs plenty with Dream, but that was Dream. He knew Dream could take care of him…

“Brother, it was amazing! You should go with us next time! The sun and sky are beautiful!”

Papyrus’ soul sunk as his little brother now had a memory that always drove him crazy. “Can I talk to you?” Papyrus grabbed Jewel’s arm and pulled her down and away from Blueberry.

Jewel noticed Blueberry didn’t follow. “You do this a lot in front of him, huh? Not even a flinch that you suddenly wanna talk private.”

Papyrus tensed up, glaring at her. “I don’t know what your game is… but torturing my brother with thoughts of the surface when..!”

“Dude, chill,” Jewel pulled her arm from him. “It’s not torture. It’s a dream for him. It’s only bad for you because you remember the resets. And it’s not like it’s unattainable. The only reason he hasn’t gone before is because, well, duh, more than one monster at a time on the surface is kind of sketchy. Not everyone is as fast thinking as you. But I’m human, I know what flies.”

“It’s still dangerous!”

“Not really.” She teleported behind him, making him jump and turn to face her. “I’m like you and the rest of the Sanses. No blasters or nothing, but I’m no slouch. Besides, ask your bro, not the first time I’ve helped you. Not that you’re my favorite Papyrus or anything,” she teased.

He couldn’t tell if she was being serious or messing around. Fuck, she was like him. “Where the fuck did you come from?”

“Eh, a world that no longer exists,” she shrugged, getting his attention.

“So… Error got to your world, too?”

“Nope. Something else. I’m not sure what. But I know it wasn’t Error.”

“How? He’s the only one who can… right?”

“That we know of. And I’m pretty sure he didn’t exist by that point, so…”

“Wait… what are you saying?”

“Eh, don’t worry about it, my backstory isn’t important. But you can ask Blue about a few details if you want later. Why don’t you go enjoy the snacks Blue brought you?”

“I don’t know if I trust you…”

Jewel shrugged. “Don’t really need you to,” she said softly. “You’re not the one who wants to be my friend,” she said as she glanced back at Blueberry, just waiting. “I’m sure he’d like it, but I’m sure you don’t like any of his friends that take him out of your line of sight. Even Dream.”

“He told you about me, huh?” He was unamused.

“Nope. Only thing we really talked about you was the fact you drink honey, not ketchup.” She turned back to him. “I was an older sibling once upon a time. The over-protective kind. But, ya know, my world doesn’t exist, so…”

Papyrus froze for a moment. He had lost his brother before… too many times to count… and almost in that way.

“Blue’s my friend now,” she said softly. “Just… so ya know, I take those very seriously. Serious enough that there was a Sans who was abused by his Papyrus… that Papyrus did not win that fight. For that Sans’ sake, I didn’t do anything that couldn’t be taken care of with a quick bit of healing… but the point had to be made.”

“Are you threatening me?” Papyrus growled, his eye flaring again.

“Nope. I know you won’t lay a hand on your bro. Just stating the facts. My friends… I’ll die for them. Protect them from anything. Even their own families. Because it’s the worst feeling in the world when the people who are supposed to love you are the ones that hurt you the most.”

His eye stopped glowing as he let out a sigh. “You’re hard to read,” he muttered.

“Eh, that could be because you can’t see my soul,” she grinned at him, which took him aback. “I know, kind of sucks. Would solve a lot of my problems if I could show it, then you could judge me and blow me up and I wouldn’t have to worry about anything,” she laughed.

Papyrus didn’t know what to make of her dark humor, but he didn’t like this. He watched as she went back to Blueberry. He really, really didn’t like the idea of his brother hanging around this psychopath. But when she came back to him, the way he beamed and the way she smiled back at him made him question what he was seeing. She looked… genuine when smiling at his brother.

“I should get going, Blue,” Jewel spoke up.

“Aw, so soon??” he pouted.

She laughed softly, “Blue, you’ve had me for over two hours now. You’re starting to slack.”

“No, I’m not! It’s my job to keep an eye out for humans and you’re human!” he said proudly, as if he was the first time he had thought of this loophole. Papyrus sweated, it was not the first time he had said it.

“So, whatcha gonna do? Turn me in to Alphys?”

Both brothers blinked at this.

“No, of course not!” Blueberry protested.

“Well, it’s gonna happen sooner or later if I stay, Blue. Especially out in the open. I know she mostly patrols in Waterfall, but doesn’t Undyne have cameras everywhere?”

Blueberry paled a little. “O-oh… right…”

Jewel smiled a bit and stroked his skull, again, if he had hair… “Remember, I’ll come back. I promised we’d cook together.”

He couldn’t help the small smile that pulled at his jaw. He was sad she was going, they had only just started to get to know one another. “Right, you promised. No more not eating, okay?”

“Heh, if I don’t need to, that shouldn’t be a thing you can put on me,” she teased. “Remember, time doesn’t flow outside of the AUs.”

“That’s not fair! You shouldn’t be neglecting meals because of that! Especially with your diet! Or lack thereof!”

Papyrus stared at them. How much did they share in those two hours? Blueberry was obviously worried. What was she up to?

“But the need to eat is negated,” she chuckled. “Saves food. But I promised to come visit. And you know if I go visit Classic, his Papyrus will feed me too, he’s just like you,” she grinned.

“But it’s not me,” he pouted.

“Well, I can always come get you, the two of you could join forces. Be a tornado in the kitchen,” she chuckled. “Make spaghetti tacos.”

Papyrus paled and Blueberry’s eyes lit up as stars. “That’s BRILLIANT!! THE MAGNIFICENT SANS APPROVES!!”

Jewel noticed Papyrus’ face and she laughed. “It’s better than it sounds. I’ve made it before.”

“You have?” Blueberry blinked.

“Yup,” she grinned. “I’ll show you both.”

“I can’t wait!” Blueberry beamed. “Please don’t keep me waiting too long for this!”

“I won’t, promise. But I do need to make up with Sans, eventually.”

“Make up?” Papyrus spoke up. This sounded like something he needed to hear.

“We had a fight before all of this. He was pretty harsh and I had to put my foot down on a few things, though I’m not blameless either. He was just worried about me. Still not used to someone trying to be my brother, let alone big brother,” she chuckled softly. “I’m used to being the big sister.”

“Well… he can’t be your elder sibling, right? You’re way older than him,” Blueberry questioned.

“Exactly!” she laughed. “That’s what I said.”

“Really?” Papyrus rose a brow. “And how old are you?”

“Oh, she’s over a hundred!” Blueberry grinned.

Papyrus would have spit out anything, or inhaled a cigarette at that, if he had it. “W-what??”

“Time doesn’t flow outside of the AUs,” she reminded with a smile.

Papyrus stared at her. Then again, how old was he really with all the resets?

She smiled softly down at Blueberry. She started petting his skull again, about to say goodbye for real this time before a chill was sent down her spine. She whipped around, eyes scanning, narrowed.

“What’s with you?”

“Jewel?” Blueberry looked up at her, confused.

There was no time to explain. Her eyes flashed that bluish-white and in an instant her barrier was up around the three of them, just in time for black tentacles slammed into it, being blasted back by the white energy.

“Nightmare!” Blueberry’s eyes narrowed as he summoned a bone spear in his hand and got closer to Jewel.

“Take it you know this guy, Sans?” Papyrus muttered softly, his eye starting to glow.

Nightmare was stunned on the ground, feeling the white energy that encased him. It was positive energy! No, positive emotion! His eye shot up, the only thing he could move at the moment his head. That was a hard hit… he’d have to be careful with that barrier… He couldn’t even get contact long enough to try and melt it with his magic… But his eye narrowed as he recognized the person inside between the two skeletons. Confusion hit him at first. He couldn’t sense any positivity here… well, from the Sans, but that was always the case. He was around his brother enough after all. But more than that… he couldn’t feel the negativity he felt earlier.

“Well, it seems you learned some new tricks since last we met…” Nightmare glowered. His best bet was to stall until this wore off.

“That’s Nightmare, Dream’s brother. The one I told you about,” Blueberry’s eyes focused on him.

“What the hell is he doing here?”

“I’m right here, you know,” he looked rather offended. “My plan was to capture this Sans to try and lure out my brother… but it seems both of my targets are fond of him.”

“Both?” Papyrus questioned before glancing at Jewel. “The hell does he want you for?”

“Heh, negativity buffet,” Jewel shrugged a little. “Self-hate goes a long way with someone like him.”

“So, I see they’ve told you about me,” Nightmare smirked.

“Little bit,” Jewel said softly. “Not enough to actually care, mind you.”

“You sure know how to try and hit a guy when he’s down. Too bad for you I never come without backup.”

“What?” Papyrus’ eyes narrowed, starting to scan around.

Jewel didn’t even flinch, smirking. “Oh, you mean Dust?”

Nightmare, Papyrus and Blueberry all shared the same surprised expression.

“Dude sucks at hiding his intent,” she chuckled. “He’s in the third tree behind and to the right, about… what, four meters off the ground? He’s waiting for your signal, which I’m guessing that was. I mean, he can try, but he ain’t gonna do shit.”

“Wanna bet?” a malice voice spoke from behind, as close to the barrier as he could. A blaster was point blank at them from the outside.

Blueberry couldn’t help his flinch as the blaster went off. He was expecting pain, but instead he felt something on him. He opened his eyes to see Papyrus having jumped in front of him, not expecting the barrier to hold, while Jewel had placed a hand on his upper arm, holding him back.

Surprise was rampant among the skeletons, Dust and Nightmare in disbelieve the barrier took that much damage head on and didn’t even flicker out.

“Told you,” Jewel smirked, her eyes flickering with white magic as the barrier around them crackled and then sent a shockwave outward, knocking even Dust several feet back, slamming into a tree, and much to Nightmare’s dismay, hitting him with another wave of positivity.

“Wow, I didn’t think you-“ Papyrus started before he noticed Jewel’s throat flex, as if she was trying to keep something down. “Human?”

“Jewel?” Blueberry called, worried.

“Forgot,” she spoke, very carefully, but the small sight of blood coating her teeth wasn’t missed by Papyrus as she tried to keep it hidden from Blueberry, “About the karma damage…”

Papyrus’ eye was lit to its fullest. “How bad?” he asked.

“He’s Level 20,” she said, glancing back at Papyrus, who paled a bit at the knowledge. “He’s a Sans… who…”

“I get it,” he muttered.

“You do have a slight advantage, Papyrus,” she said, still keeping her mouth from moving too much. “Sanses all start off the same. One stats, all over the board. Leveling made him stronger… but you start off with better stats and have all that judgment karma of yours. You’d have a much better chance than Classic… but still, don’t let him hit you. You can take more damage than Classic, but that karma bite he’s got will really widdle you down.”

“Seems like it’s taken its toll on you too,” he noticed, glancing her over. Yet, despite it, he couldn’t see her soul…

Jewel watched as Dust started to get back up. “Definitely can’t take a hit like that again… barrier’s an extension of my magic, absorbs the karmic damage like a towel in water.”

“So what do we do?” Blueberry asked, concern as they backed in together.

“I detest it… but I can switch magic. I don’t think I have a choice. And as much as I would rather not risk you fighting Dust, neither of you can handle Nightmare.”

“Only Dream really can,” Blueberry agreed. “But we don’t have a choice here.”

“Sure we do, let me blast him,” Papyrus growled.

“He’s immune to any kind of attack, brother,” Blueberry explained, noticing Dust going over to help Nightmare, who was not thrilled, “His body deflects magic and nothing physical can get past it either, he just dissolves it. Dream’s positivity arrows are the only thing… and Jewel’s barrier seems to do something…”

“Yeah, but with Dust around I can’t. Karmic damage goes right to the soul. I can handle a lot, but I’m still weak from before, Blue. I can’t afford to go into a state like that again. I don’t know if you and Dream can get me out this time.”

“Well, you’re obviously not freaking out,” Papyrus noticed her calm and collected exterior. “I hope you have a plan.”

“Yeah, and I hate it…”

“The fuck was that, Dust?!” Nightmare shouted as his companion came over to try and help him up, but he was still partially paralyzed from the strength of that blast. His tentacles weren’t responding.

“Heh, sorry boss,” he lazily replied, no real hint of remorse in his voice. However, he glanced back over at the group, noticing them talking quietly amongst themselves. “How much you wanna bet they’re trying to figure out how to get Dream?”

“Don’t be so quick to dismiss a human. You of all people should understand that.”

“Pfft, with that kind of karma? She’s hurtin’ boss. Just like the rest of them goodie two-shoes.”

“Maybe… but something is severely wrong,” Nightmare’s eye narrowed as he focused on her.

“Like what?”

“I can’t feel the positivity in her, unless I touch that barrier. But more than that… the negativity I felt before is gone.”

“Maybe she’s feelin’ better.”

“No, Dust. You don’t just “get better” from that kind of self-loathing… something else is going on here. I don’t care what you do with the skeletons, but I want her alive, got it?”

“Fine,” he sighed. “Can you imagine how much LV I’d get from her though?”

“Dust,” Nightmare’s voice lowered dangerously.

“Okay, jeez,” he muttered before stepping back, getting a blaster ready. “Well… I doubt that barrier can take another hit,” he held a malicious grin.

Blueberry swallowed thickly as Dust prepared another attack. “Jewel, I don’t like this.”

“Just remember what I told you. Stay with Papyrus, watch his back, and most importantly, don’t let each other get hit. You’re the Magnificent Sans, after all. I believe in you, Blue.”

The tiny skeleton settled his nerves, deciding to focus on doing the very best he could. “Right! We’ve got this!”

“Heh, wish I had your confidence,” Papyrus rolled off his tongue.

“You’re just too lazy,” Jewel smirked a bit, taking a steadying breath. “On my three. One,” she watched Dust get closer, “two,” the blaster started to open its maw, “Three!”

Papyrus grabbed Sans and they teleported away the second the barrier dropped and the laser fired, Jewel doing the same. Dust was taken aback, his eyes scanning around him before he felt something right in front of him.

“Peekaboo~” Jewel smirked, her eyes blood red as she slammed her fist into the blaster, shattering it and the ground directly under them.

Dust barely managed to teleport out of the way as his blaster exploded, the energy in it still volatile. When he looked back, his eyes widened at the giant crater that now adorned the forest scenery. His eyes widened further as this crazy chick suddenly started running for him. He teleported out of the way, before realizing it was a feint and she was going after Nightmare! He was about to turn and go after her when he felt his soul grow heavy and cold. His eyes widened as he turned, seeing both skeleton brothers focusing their magic on him.

“You’re blue now!” Blueberry triumphantly announced.

No way in hell was it supposed to be this easy, Papyrus knew better. He watched as this version of his brother summoned bones and blasters.

“Sans!” he barked, and instantly Sans and he both summoned bones and blasters to counter his, the two of them working in tandem to hold Dust back. It was a stalemate, for the moment. Dust had a lot of LV, but together they were stronger… though Papyrus knew this wouldn’t last. Their magic was divided between too many different types.

Nightmare stared at the female as she approached, his gooey lips turning into a grin as she did. She stopped a decent way from him.

“So… we meet again,” he spoke first. “Learned your lesson this time?”

“Oh, sure,” she smirked. “Underneath all that goo you’re still a fragile little skeleton with easily breakable bones~”

Nightmare’s gaze faltered just a second. The ill intent he felt in her previously wasn’t there, but neither was anything else. She learned a few tricks, it seemed. But this confident persona… well… “If you can make it through. You think you’re the only one prepared this time?”

“Oh hardy, har~,” her smile faded and was replaced with a seriousness even Nightmare knew not to underestimate. “I’ve met Dream. I’m here with Blueberry. You really think they didn’t tell me all about your little quirks? Whereas you…” she laughed, “You ain’t got shit on me, unless I give it to you. Which, I’ll admit, I’m giving you a lot more than I’m comfortable with. So… let’s get this over with.”

Nightmare’s eye widened as her arms coated themselves in blackness, the black steam he had seen before coating around in a tangible layer. He remembered the flakes he saw before. They had appeared too late, after she had already entered his form. It protected her, if he recalled. She could really do some damage if she got deep enough and he still couldn’t feel his tentacles. Normally he would have recovered by now, what was the deal?! Dream’s positivity never stunned him like this. Weakened him, sure, but stunned?

In a split second, he felt himself get pinned in the snow. He tried to fight with his hands, his legs, tried to force his tentacles to move, but despite everything, he was a tiny skeleton against this large human woman. His normal defense was useless as he felt her hand penetrate his chest. He fought with everything he had, trying to will his body to move, to get away from her in any form, but it was like his magic was paralyzed! He could feel it try and burn her, that was at least still working, still resisting penetration, but he could feel her fingers getting deeper in his chest.

“Dust!!” he shouted, trying not to sound desperate. He was not used to being out of control, he was always in control!

Dust spared a glance as he was gaining on the two brothers, and his sockets grew dark as he saw Nightmare being overpowered. A wave of determination came over him and he pushed the brothers back, Papyrus just grabbing Blueberry in time to teleport away from the attacks. Dust rushed the human, climbing on her back with a jagged bone to shove through her shoulder. She didn’t even flinch when he literally stabbed her in the back. Instead, her gaze silently turned over her shoulder.

“Get her off of me!” Nightmare struggled, feeling those fingertips getting too close..!

That’s what surprised him though. She touched his soul, he felt it. She touched the black apple in his chest. Then stopped. As soon as she touched him, she turned and focused on Dust, who was about to stab her again. Did he do enough damage to stop her when she was so close? Either way, he didn’t care, that had been too close for his own comfort!

Dust tried to teleport away, but she managed to follow him. She managed to grab hold of his sleeve before he did and he saw those black hands, the ones that went through Nightmare, go for his chest. He had blaster in her face, but she managed to sock him in the soul before he could even get it firing! He was winded, holding his chest, the sternum and several ribs broken and shattered on the ground.

“D-damn,” he muttered. He slowly stood. Broken chest or not, he could still fight. He had worse from the human of his world.

Jewel’s red eyes focused on Dust as she ran at him, only to have Nightmare come back, at least one of his tentacles work as he held up as a shield to absorb the impact, but she simply smirked. Nightmare saw the look in eye as instead, she grabbed him, going through his tentacle and then grabbed Dust and in a second, they were gone.

Papyrus let out a sigh. “She did it. Your friend is something, Sans,” he said as a weight lifted off his shoulders. When he heard nothing, he turned, looking at his brother who stood there, shaking, tears in his eyes. “Sans!”


	21. Precious Things

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **Goldie, Garnet, Onyx LG!Alphys and LustGold belong to S-E-Sagas**

# Chapter 21 – Precious Things

That had taken more out of her than she thought… Jewel was currently floating outside of the AU she banished Nightmare and Dust to, barely separating them. They couldn’t track where she went from out here… too many worlds… But she couldn’t rest now. She pulled out the two red crystals in her hands before slamming them into an open window in the code. An eruption of ones, zeros and various letters ran through it before she let her eyes fade back to their normal color. The black mist that surrounded her arms evaporated… partially. Her arm that went into Nightmare was still burnt, but not nearly as bad as before. It was an angry red with scorch marks, but that was mild compared to before. Her wound on her back was still bleeding and… well… Nightmare’s hands were just as acidic as the reset of him as her clothes showed the tell-tell signs of her struggle along with the slight burns underneath. She hadn’t protected those areas… to be honest, she didn’t have the magic. Too much healing… and she couldn’t afford to retreat into her soul again. No, no she had to go somewhere safe…

Error… Ink… Sans… one of them… One of the… Sanses…

It had been a long day at work. Sans was exhausted as he let his purple vest with blue feather trim slump past his shoulders. He so badly wanted to just plop down on his couch and sleep.

“Come now, brother,” Papyrus encouraged, those pinkish-red eyes gazing down at his smaller, older brother. “You shouldn’t be so down-hearted. I’m making pasta tonight, I know how you enjoy it.”

Sans chuckled softly, his eyes opening to reveal one purple eye on the right and a shiny, almost metallic golden eye on the left. He stretched and his already exposed midriff, which was nothing but spine, ribs and the tops of his pelvis showed just that much more past his slumping, baggy vest.

“Yeah, you’re right. I really shouldn’t skip dinner,” he smiled at him, though realistically, the thought of food just tired him out more. He wasn’t in the mood, all he wanted to do was sleep… he hadn’t been getting much rest lately, his mind elsewhere…

“Again,” Papyrus pointed out. Sans hadn’t really been focusing on meals lately and it was worrying him. He was already so small and it felt like any stray breeze would knock him over. Luckily, they weren’t in Snowdin anymore, there were no real winds around the capital. In the Royal Palace.

Sans was about to come up with some excuse, some little white lie that he eats on his breaks while at work. After all, what they did, it did create quite the appetite. But by luck, though good or bad he wasn’t sure, their attention was stolen by something literally appearing by the ceiling and crashing to the floor.

“Holy shit!”

The brothers jumped back before running over. It was a person, that much they could tell. But they landed on their stomach, so the most they saw at first was the gaping hole in the shoulder that was surrounded by red… but the wound itself was coated in black with little bits flaking off as if evaporating. Papyrus was the one who gently rolled the person over on their side, brown hair falling over the face of what was very clearly a human. Blood dripped down her lips and chin. Her eyes were glazed over, barely open.

“S-sans…” she weakly called out before her eyes finally fell shut.

“Brother, do you know her?” Papyrus asked.

“No, bro, I don’t.” His mind was racing with the implications this had. He had met other versions of himself… could she be from another world? That had to be it, right? She confused him with another? There was no way he would forget meeting a human. But there was also no missing all the red in her mouth as she spoke his name.

“Can you pick her up?” he quickly asked his brother. There was no way he could, she was as tall as Papyrus, and no doubt weighed more than both skeletons combined.

“Maybe, but… I don’t want to hurt her.”

Point taken, she fell hard and while blood was something monsters still dealt with thanks to the minuscule amount of physical matter they had, this much of it was highly disconcerting. “Stay here with her, I’ll go get Alphys!”

Sans was faster than his brother, they both knew it. Between his lighter frame, despite his shorter legs, and the fact he could shortcut to wherever he wanted, it was just so much quicker.

Not that they were far from where the yellow dinosaur-type monster stayed. She was still in her pink lab coat. She worked herself day and night, constantly, to try and figure out a more permanent solution to their current problem. When she wasn’t managing the Harem, this is what she brought herself to do. After all… it had been eight years since the project first started and not a single child had been gifted the Golden Trait. And as much as they could keep trying… the fact was the monsters weren’t exactly going to live forever. So many things could happen… to rely on these ten, all of which she was very good friends with… some more than others…

“Yo, Alphys!” she heard from behind her. She jumped up and turned, relieved to see a familiar blue fish-woman.

“O-oh, Undyne,” she let out a started breath she didn’t realize she was holding.

“Ya really need to stop throwin’ yourself into your work like that,” Undyne chuckled at her. “C’mon, business hours are over. Time for some grub. And you need something than those instant noodles you inhaling.”

“W-what did you h-have in mind?” Alphys asked. She wasn’t opposed to the idea in the slightest. A break would probably do her good, she was banging her head against the wall with the same ideas for the past week, trying to find some way around them. Maybe spending time with her friend would help.

Before the two could even get to the door, Sans had teleported into the room.

“Jeez, punk! What did I tell you about doing that?!” Undyne roared at him. She _hated_ it when he pulled this stunt.

“Sorry! But something urgent just happened! Al, I need your help!”

“O-o-of course!” she quickly picked herself up.

“What’s wrong? Something happen to Papyrus?” Undyne quickly asked, on their heels with them.

“No, but..! Just come on!” he grabbed them and teleported them back.

They reappeared to the sight of Papyrus crouched down beside a bleeding human. Surprise was an understatement for the two female monsters’ current expressions.

“O-o-oh my g-g-g-goodness!” Alphys called out and ran over to the human.

“The hell happened, shorty?!” Undyne then demanded.

“The hell do I know? She appeared out of nowhere and fell in front of us!” Sans barked back at her.

“W-we need to get her inside,” Alphys spoke up. “I-I-I’ll need t-to examine the injuries m-more closely.”

“Right,” Undyne sighed before going over and easily lifting the human off the ground. “Jeez, humans are a lot heavier than they look.”

“I-It’s the m-muscle,” Alphys spoke up.

“We can go to our room, it’s closer,” Papyrus spoke up.

Sans wasn’t sure he liked that idea, but it was the closest room and she did look like she was in bad shape. Even if she was a strange human, randomly popping into his world, she knew a Sans… that had to count for something, right?

It had been a couple of hours as the group hovered over the unconscious human as she lay on the Papyrus’ bed. Grey-blue eyes slowly opened and noticed the very purple room she was in. In a panic, she shot up, knocking over a poor tiny dinosaur in the process.

“I’m sorry, Alphys, I—!”

Quickly, Jewel placed a hand over her mouth. Shit, shit! She really just called the tiny dinosaur by name!

Alphys stared up at the human, confused. “I-it’s all r-right,” she tried to ease her, but the statement wasn’t lost.

“Do you know her, Al?” Undyne asked.

“N-no,” Alphys replied. “S-strange t-that you know m-my name…”

“She knew brother’s too,” Papyrus spoke up.

It was then Jewel fully looked around, noticing the outfits and all the… purple… God, where did she end up now?

“H-how are you feeling? I-I’m s-s-s-surprised you’re… a-awake,” Alphys spoke up.

“Fine given the circumstances, I suppose,” Jewel muttered. She put a hand to her mouth, wiping the corners. She could still feel that coppery tang in her mouth, but it wasn’t fresh at least. “Heh, medical questions before the interrogation?”

All eyes blinked and looked at each other, then back to her.

“Sounds like you’ve done this before,” Sans finally spoke up, looking over at her from the side of the room. He purposely was standing back, just watching.

Jewel sweated a little. “Well, uh… not quite… this…” she admitted. “Look, I’m grateful you’re all so interested in taking care of me, but, uh…”

“Don’t sweat it,” Sans said with a smile, walking over. “You’re from another world, right? That’s how you know our names.”

“O-oh, s-so she’s f-from o-one of the o-other worlds y-you mentioned?” Alphys questioned. “Yes, I-I suppose that makes sense…”

Jewel looked a little more relaxed. “So… you know about the AUs.”

“Yeah, we’ve met a few others. There’s this one bar we like to meet up,” he chuckled.

“Really?” she rose a brow. “Normally you need a hopper. Maybe there’s an overlay…” she muttered softly, starting to think.

Sans and Alphys knew that look and couldn’t help but chuckle.

“Ugh, more nerd stuff!” Undyne rolled her eyes. “So, you got someone we can call for ya, punk?”

“Nah. I mean, not that I know any of their numbers to begin with,” she sweated. “I can teleport between worlds on my own.”

“Explains how you got here then,” Papyrus said with a little relief. “You just popped out of nowhere and collapsed in front of us.”

“Yeah, sorry about that,” she sweated. “I, uh… I meant to go back to one of my friends. I guess in my state, the thought of just going back to “Sans” just brought me to the nearest one… or… something.”

“W-well, you’re all stable it s-seems,” Alphys spoke as she stood up. “Your arm is bandaged and I can’t tell what caused the bleeding in your mouth but it stopped.”

Jewel sweated a little. “Yeah, uh… you wouldn’t… be able to help with that,” she said softly. “Human anatomy is weird.”

“Y-you know what’s wrong with you?” Alphys then questioned.

“Healing magic has its benefits, especially with self-diagnosis,” Jewel commented, then saw the stares from the four sets of eyes in the room. Well, three and a half. “Yeah, um, I’m weird, I’ll heal up in no time, don’t worry about me. I’m pretty hard to kill,” she smiled, a little embarrassed. She felt more like a spectacle here than she did in any of the other AUs. Then again… those had kids in them… and what she was feeling here… it wasn’t… what she expected.

“O-oh, are you uncomfortable? Does it hurt? I-I have something f-for that,” Alphys said as she started digging through her bag.

“No, I’m not in pain,” Jewel sighed a little. “Just… awkward. I don’t normally do social things in big groups. I’m lucky if I can handle more than two people. A-and I’m tired,” she muttered softly. What was with her today? Then again, Blue did take all her social energy…

“Well, fret not!” Papyrus smiled. “You can stay with us tonight!”

“I-I don’t know,” Alphys started to protest. “You know the rules, y-you can’t just-!”

“It’s okay. I’ll just go,” Jewel said with a soft smile. “I don’t want to put you guys out, you’ve already done more than enough and I feel bad for scaring you as it is.”

Alphys looked a little disappointed. She had so many questions.

“Would you come back?” Papyrus then asked, making everyone turn to him.

“I have never seen a human before,” he admitted. “I just… had some questions.”

Jewel chuckled softly. Of course he did, he was a Papyrus… “I mean if you want me to. But I should get back, Blue is probably losing his mind.”

“Blue?” Sans questioned, a brow raised.

“The Sans I was with. We call him Blueberry because he’s small, sweet, and the biggest blue eyes you’ve ever seen. I can only imagine what’s going through his head right now…”

“Why? What happened?” Undyne asked. “I mean, I’m assuming it’s the reason you came popping into our world all banged up.”

“Yeah, we were attacked. There’s this… well, he’s not quite a Sans, but…” she sighed a little. “It doesn’t matter, it was just bad. I didn’t want to risk Blue or his Papyrus, so I grabbed the two and teleported them out. I separated them, hid, but the damage apparently was worse than I thought. I knew I had to get back to one of my friends, they could get in touch with Blue if I didn’t go straight there. But…”

“Then you should definitely get back to your friend!” Papyrus declared. “You can visit with us another time!”

She would have to look in the code to see where she was… it would be on her history, she knew, even if she didn’t know where she was right now. Plus, the news of an overlay in the world was definitely something she should look into.

“Thanks for all the help,” she smiled at them and waved. But the second she tried to teleport, her magic fizzled out and she doubled over, grabbing her chest as she coughed up some more blood.

“Yo, punk!” Undyne ran and grabbed her faster than any of them could react.

“I-I-I-I don’t understand!” Alphys cried out as she ran over. “E-everything seemed fine!”

Jewel clenched her eyes shut as she could feel them pulse, magic flaring. The monsters could feel it leaking into the room and they stared at her. It took her a moment to get it under control. Slowly, she took a steadying breath and opened her eyes.

“That was…” Sans started, staring at her.

“Y-yeah… I… guess the damage to my soul was worse than I thought…”

“B-but nothing came up when I tried to check!” Alphys spoke up.

“My soul is undetectable. Obviously, I know it’s there, but it’s… well… you can’t scan it, can’t yank it out… I suppose that’s good in most cases, but it also means healing magic or anything won’t work on it either… and to be honest… I’ve never had it damaged before so this is new to me…”

“What the hell damaged it like that?” Undyne asked rather loudly.

“Uh… it was… karmic damage to a barrier I placed up. Dude was LV 20, so…”

“Shit…” Sans muttered.

“So… sorry… I… uh… I don’t think I can… teleport out of here. Not until my soul recovers enough…”

The group all looked at each other. This made this more difficult for sure.

“Listen,” Undyne spoke up. “It’s late. No one has to know about this until morning, right?” she started. “I mean, she’s not going anywhere right away. I can… even lend ya some clothes so you can get rid of those burned and stained ones. I think we’re about the same size…”

“So long as they’re not form-fitting,” Jewel sweated a little.

“Well, I can see what I have,” Undyne muttered. “You punks okay with letting her stay here? It might be hard to move her at this point.”

“Of course,” Papyrus grinned.

Sans simply shrugged. “Doesn’t really bother me.”

“A-all right,” Alphys sighed. “C-call if you n-need a-anything. I-I wish I-I could do m-more for y-your soul… b-but if what you s-said is true…”

“Trust me doc,” Jewel chuckled. “This is been a thing. You don’t know how many Sanses are kinda up in arms about not being able to read me.”

Undyne and Alphys held a small smile.

“What’s your name anyway, punk?” Undyne asked.

“Jewel,” she smiled.

They all kind of stared at each other and there was a bit of laughter.

“Jeez! You’d fit in well here,” Undyne laughed.

Jewel rose a brow. “Am I missing something?”

“Nah, just our “stage names”,” Sans smiled. “We’re all kind of precious stones or metals.”

Undyne smirked, pointing to herself. “Onyx.”

“Garnet,” Papyrus smiled.

“Goldie,” Sans chuckled.

Jewel chuckled. “I suppose it does fit. Especially since Jewel’s not my real name either.”

“Really?” Papyrus asked. “Then why did you introduce yourself to us as it?”

“Because it’s what I prefer now. My old name died with my world.” Silence filled the room, but Jewel suddenly laughed. “Oh please! Don’t start the pity part. You know how long I’ve been without it? I’m fine. Really,” she smiled at them all.

Weak, but genuine smiles greeted her.

“Well, it’s past dinner time now,” Undyne spoke up. “Gotta get going if we’re gonna have anything before bed.”

“R-right,” Alphys agreed, looking at the two skeletons. “Y-You’re s-sure you’re okay with this?”

“It’s fine,” Sans chuckled softly.

“Of course! Now, I’ll walk you both to the door, unless you wish to stay for dinner?” Papyrus offered, but it was declined by the ladies.

Jewel watched as they walked out, the voices fading as they went down the hall.

“You really have no method of contacting anyone?” Sans then asked.

Jewel sighed. “I gave them my number, not the other way around… besides…” she went into her pocket and pulled out her phone. It was smashed. “I don’t think this thing is worth much.”

“So even if I let you use mine, you don’t have their numbers,” he sighed.

“I mean… I could try Ink.”

Sans rose a bone brow. “Ink?”

“He’s an AU hopper too. Another Sans, but his powers are… well, unique. I know a couple of other hoppers but Ink’s the only one with a “summon” I suppose. If you spill liquid, it creates another portal for him to go through. But he has to see the portal open, and if he’s not at his base…”

“He’s not going to see it,” he sighed.

“And with me only being gone a short time… there’s no guarantee and I rather not clean up any big messes.”

“I’m with ya there,” he muttered softly before rolling his head and rubbing his neck. Stars, he was tired.

“Besides… I’m not really trackable, but I don’t know if Ink is… I… really rather not bring any drama to your world. It’s… strange to not have an Undyne go nuts over a human soul.”

“Why would they?” Sans asked.

“In most AUs, Undyne is captain of the royal guard, serves right under Asgore. And… well… six human souls have already been gathered, so…”

“So..?”

“So the barrier…”

“Oh,” he shrugged. “Well, we don’t really worry about that down here. We got enough issues.”

“Like what? I’ll admit, I’m confused to which AU I’m in. I mean… you’re dressed like Lust, so I have to assume it’s a Lust variant, but I can’t feel anything I would expect from it.”

“Feel?” he questioned.

“I’ll explain it later,” she sighed. “So… question, and don’t get offended. How’s Papyrus’ cooking? Because in some AUs, it’s a kitchen fire waiting to happen.”

Sans laughed a little. “No, he’s good. Not the world famous skills he thinks he has, but it’s edible.”

She let out a sigh of relief. “How long was I out?”

“About two hours, give or take.”

She let out a sigh of relief. But it was laced with guilt.

“Hey… you want me to go to that bar and see if my friends could help?”

“No, Ink might be the only one they could get to and again… admitting I’m here could bring unwanted attention. It’s safer to just… pretend I don’t exist for the moment. I’ll heal up, and once it’s enough I’ll get out of your figurative hair.”

Sans let out a soft chuckle, he couldn’t help it. “Well, you can rest there if you don’t feel up to eating.”

“Eh, I really don’t, but I should,” she muttered. “At least a little. Blue would kick me if he knew I was passing up food. Especially since he ate half of mine,” she chuckled. Even if it only had been a couple of hours ago… food was one way to get her magic back. “Though, Sans?”

“Yeah?”

“How long does it take… for a soul to heal?”

“Well… that depends on the damage. If it’s… structural damage, it may never heal.”

“But just… like from a fight… you know how karmic damage works, right?”

“Well, yeah. It’s a poison… how effective it is depends on the LV of the attacker and defender. You said the person had 20 LOVE?”

“Yeah…”

“What’s yours?” he blatantly asked.

“I… don’t know.”

“You… don’t know?”

“I can’t look at my own stats. Even I can’t access my own soul. Even with my go-around it’s all corrupted.”

“What do you mean, go around?”

“I mean…” she sighed. “Look… I’m exhausted. Maybe we can go over all the details in the morning? I should just eat and sleep… sooner I get this healed up, the sooner I’m gone.”

“You make it sound like we don’t want you here.”

“Well, do you?” she eyed him.

Sans felt his soul shudder at the look. It was like she was staring right through him. Granted, he wasn’t exactly thrilled, but he wasn’t going to turn her away. She was hurt, badly by the sound of it. Her physical wounds didn’t even tell half the story. And to run into a guy with LV20…

“I’ll… admit it’s weird. Not something I’m used to… but I’m not about to throw you out. I mean, you can’t really take care of yourself with a gash in your soul like that. That was a lot of magic leaking out.”

“Yeah… and teleporting is the easier of my abilities. Should be the first one I can do again.”

“Just because you can force yourself to doesn’t mean you should. If you go back to your friends like that they’re going to freak.”

“Yeah, I can hear half of them now,” she sighed. “But I was reckless. I forgot about how most Sanses have the karmic damage calculation in their stats. I’m so used to hanging around the ones that don’t…”

“So you hang around some unique ones?”

“Heh, I hang around mostly good-karma ones. I forgot completely that it works the other way around too. That was my bad.”

Sans chuckled a little. “Cockiness gets you every time.”

“Hindsight is always 20-20,” she sighed.

Sans moved to sit on the bed, not directly next to her, but enough to be in a more friendly manner instead of leaning against the wall. “So, I know you said you’re tired and all, but my brother’s going to be cooking for a bit. If there’s anything you wanna get off your chest, now might be the time. Like, how you’re looking through me.”

Jewel sighed and leaned forward on her knees. She explained the bare basics to him, about how she lived outside in the code, pulled up a window that had data from his world, which didn’t require magic at all, it was part of her biology now, just as it was as natural for Error to pixelate or Ink’s eyes to change shape and color. She explained that she was an empath, how it gave her the ability to read one’s emotions, get a feel of who they were.

“So… yeah, not really all that different than you judging someone’s soul,” she shrugged.

“Still feels more violating than that…” he shuddered.

“Just because someone can read through your poker face doesn’t make it violating,” she chuckled. “Reading a soul is more invasive technically. You broadcast your emotions, even the ones you try and hide. Trying to hide them just makes them stand out more.”

“Really?” he questioned, thinking about it. “So… when you said you didn’t feel what you thought you would… what do you mean?”

“Well, most Lust variants inject monsters of age with… uh… well, to combat their fertility issues, they just try and, ya know, mate more so the injections are a… make the monsters in a constant state of heat.”

Sans stared at her, but then laughed. “I suppose that explains some of my friends then,” he smiled a bit. “But, yeah, no, we don’t do that here. We figured out the biology of the problem, just not how to fix it.”

“Really?” she turned to him.

“Yeah. I don’t know about the others, but our world, we have the Royal Harem. The only ten monsters that can sire children.”

“The stage names…”

“Yeah.”

“So all three of you…”

“Yup.”

“God damn.”

Sans shrugged a little.

“Well… do you at least enjoy it?” she questioned.

Sans turned to her, both eyes open instead of lazily only having his golden eye open. “What?”

“I mean… that’s fucked up! You’re born with this… and you have to… do you at least enjoy it? Because I mean… I… I don’t know if I could go through with that. I’d… be lying to myself and say at least the job’s fun but I’d be dying inside. Like… that’s a lot of pressure and that you have no choice at all.”

“We have a choice, we don’t have to participate. But, ya know, we do our part for monster-kind ya know?”

“That’s selfless as hell, man.”

He shrugged. “I’m just one of ten, the others do just as much.”

“You still hate it.”

Sans stiffened a little. “Damn it, don’t do that,” he muttered before he looked at her. “What… what is it?” he asked, not liking the look in her eyes.

“I just…” she looked down on the ground. “Still feels very non-con to me. Like, if people knew, and they probably do, and you said no… the amount of… the guilt they put on you…”

“It’s not that bad,” Sans tried. “It’s just how things are.” But that look didn’t disappear from her face. “Jewel, really, it’s okay.”

A shaky breath escaped her and Sans couldn’t help but worry about where this was coming from. Sure, their situation sucked, but this was how life was. Everyone had to do their part. If he didn’t, he’d be leaving his baby brother to be taking on his part of the burden, and the others, and he couldn’t do that. He couldn’t be selfish.

“Any clues as to what’s causing the issue?”

“Nope,” Sans replied. “And we’re nowhere near any closer than when we started.”

Jewel began to think about it. “So you’re losing sires and only have monsters who can receive, right?”

He laughed a little. “What, you magically going to have the answer?”

Jewel chuckled a little. “Oh, hardly. I’m not even close to a scientist. I just… think too much. And it sounds like a problem with one of the countries of my world… just backward.”

“Oh, really?”

“Yeah. But theirs was their own fault… cultural bullshit. Their population exploded, so the government banned multiple births. But there was this stigma that women couldn’t carry on the family name, weren’t worth anything. So a lot of people, when they found out they were having a girl, they’d terminate the pregnancy or kill the child after birth in secret… then try again for a boy.”

Sans stared at her, the color drained from his face. “That’s horrific! What the hell?!”

“Yeah… led to them having an 80/20 split male-to-female ratio. Men weren’t so valuable then, when they couldn’t get married and keep the family alive,” she sighed. “Even after the practices stopped… the ratio never got better. It was like…”

“Karma,” Sans muttered.

“Cursed by their own hand,” Jewel sighed. “But, they later found out a way to manipulate hormones during pregnancy to try and coax the unborn child to be female. The ratio went up a little. Not everyone really agreed with the method, apparently, my side of the world called it pseudo-science.”

Sans listened, wondering if that would be what they had to do. Try and alter an unborn monster’s soul to try and give it the Golden Trait. That didn’t sit well with him.

They sat in silence for a bit, before Jewel asked another question. “Has this been going on long, do you think? Or did it just recently drop?”

“No, it’s been… a while.”

“Ya know… I wonder if… well, what if you compared data from a monster’s soul that’s not part of your world, that has no issues, with your own. Would that help?”

Sans blinked. “I mean… yeah, that would definitely be data we don’t have… if there was a difference…”

“Tell ya what… it might take me a bit but… let me talk to my friends. I can see if they’ll let me scan their souls… either let their Alphys do it and I bring ya the stuff or… ya know. I mostly know Sanses, so…”

“So comparisons with me, huh?” he shrugged a little. “I guess I can handle a bit of poking and prodding.”

“Most of them wouldn’t be okay with me asking their Papyrus’ either. Well, Red, maybe, but, I can just imagine Edgy’s reaction.”

“These are some of the weirdest nicknames,” Sans chuckled.

“And most of you are colors,” she chuckled. “Blue, Red, Goldie,” she smiled. “Even Onyx and Garnet are colors too.”

“True,” he chuckled. “But… thanks.”

“For what?” Jewel rose a brow.

“For… caring, I guess. Most people are happy to just get a kid out of us. You get here and the second you hear about the problem, your mind is racing to fix it.”

“I don’t like suffering in any form,” Jewel said softly. She had seen more than enough, caused more than enough, especially in her own family…

“Brother! Human! Dinner is ready!” they heard from down the hall.

“Seems like no matter which Papyrus, names are never registered for humans,” she chuckled softly.

“Heh, sorry, I’ll try and make him remember your name.”


	22. Scars

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **Goldie, Garnet, Onyx LG!Alphys and LustGold belong to S-E-Sagas**

# Chapter 22 – Scars

It was a lovely dinner. Spaghetti was of course still on the menu. It was always a quick fix for Jewel back in the day too and it was still one of her favorite foods, much to Papyrus’ delight. When Undyne returned later with some clothes for the wayward hopper, Jewel was grateful, but… it really didn’t appeal much to her. At least the pajamas were… decent… she felt weird about it though. Everything in this world still had a sexy theme to it, nothing really… casual. She felt way too exposed and she wound up sleeping in her damaged clothes.

Come morning, Jewel would be the first to awaken, unable to fully rest in such a strange place. She went into the kitchen and started making breakfast for the kind gentlemen who allowed her to stay. Though, of course, Papyrus was the first to awaken. He threw a bit of a fit, as per usual. She was the guest, it wasn’t necessary. But Jewel insisted. So while she finished, Papyrus went to awaken his brother. As he came down, Sans silently questioned why Jewel hadn’t changed when Undyne had brought her clothes, not even into the nightwear. Then again… she was slightly taller and it might not have fit. Especially with how low-cut it was. He could understand not wanting to wear it around some strange men. Not that he or his brother were really interested.

“So then Red goes down and starts coughing and sputtering, going, “Damn it, ya’ got it up my nose-hole!” It was too much for Ink and Sans, they just started rolling on the ground laughing!”

Sans and Papyrus both chuckled as she reminisced about her friends, Papyrus of course asking about them.

“So they all have nicknames,” Papyrus started. “Are you going to use ours? I mean, Papyrus is my name of course, but you call everyone by their nickname except for the Sans from the main timeline.”

“Well… I mean, I could, if you want. I just… thought you wouldn’t want me to,” she admitted. “I mean, the whole point of a stage name is to keep your life separate. You’re not working and it’s not like there are any other versions here right now.”

“Appreciate the thought, but it’s fine. How many Sanses and Papyrus do you know?” Goldie chuckled. “You have to try and keep it straight in your head somehow.”

“Well, I suppose,” she smiled a little. “If you’re sure.”

“We’re sure. Don’t worry about it. Though, come to think of it, Alphys doesn’t have another name.”

“Well, to be fair, I haven’t met any other Alphys or Undyne,” Jewel smiled. “Remember, Undyne would probably start a fight in any other world. Except Blue’s, that would be Alphys,” she chuckled.

“Why?” Sans rose a brow.

“Because Blue’s world is called UnderSwap, since the roles are all swapped around. Classic Sans and Papyrus basically switch, and you get Stretch and Blue instead. Stretch is the lazy powerhouse with the judging ability while Blue’s the pure boy who believes in everyone. The same goes through the rest of them. See, in Classic’s timeline, Toriel hides in the ruins waiting for humans to come down, and Asgore runs the Underground, and Undyne is Captain of the Royal Guard and Alphys is the royal scientist. In Underswap, Toriel rules, Asgore’s in the ruins, Alphys is the captain and Undyne’s the royal scientist.”

Goldie couldn’t stop his snickering. “Oh god, you have to get her to meet her “nerd” counterpart, I just have to see that!”

“Anime obsessed too,” she chuckled.

“So, if you’re friends with Blue, why aren’t you friends with Classic Papyrus?” Garnet asked.

“I just haven’t met him yet. The only real time I’ve spent in the main timeline has been while injured. Papyrus helped take care of me and all, from what I was told, but he was out patrolling and working on his puzzles. I’ve… kind of been on shaky ground with Classic after he started trying to force his views of Error on me.”

“Which one is Error?” Goldie asked.

“He and Ink are Sanses that don’t fit into a world. Neither have one. Like me, they exist outside of it all. Error’s the one who goes and destroys AUs while Ink helps inspire and bring them to life.”

“And why are you friends with a murder?” Goldie rose a brow.

“Dude, I know, it’s like befriending the grim reaper,” she chuckled a little. “He’s sweet once you can get him to open up. He’s guarded, never really had a friend before and it’s all still new to him. But he was willing to talk, so he deserved a chance.”

“I suppose that’s fair,” Goldie relented.

“Then there’s Red,” Jewel pointed out. “I love how Classic likes him, despite his entire world literally being a “kill or be killed” version of Classic’s. Just kind of… hypocritical, ya know? I mean… I see the difference, but still.”

“Well, we don’t, what is it?” Garnet asked.

Jewel sighed. “Error… destroys the worlds because they remind him of how much he was abandoned. He calls them glitches, abominations that shouldn’t exist. And despite what others think, he does include himself in that. Red… his whole world, he was raised to believe that if you don’t kill first, you’ll be killed. So despite the lack of population, the second someone steps out of line, dusted. Edgy is particularly nasty, he’s trying to get on the Royal Guard, so he’s extremely tough on everyone, especially Red. He beats on him and berates him. Red still only has the one hp thing, and last time I was there, Edgy nearly smashed his skull in and expected him to stay conscious… had to put Edgy in his place after that,” she muttered.

“Wait… what did you do?” Goldie asked, paling a little.

“I didn’t kill him if that’s what you’re thinking. He wanted a show of strength, so I gave him one. Freaked Red out something fierce, and I feel bad, but… my world was like that too. At least the part where I grew up. It didn’t take me long and I didn’t do anything I couldn’t fix up. I only hit him because he demanded I stopped dodging his attacks “like a coward”,” she shrugged.

Garnet and Goldie looked to one another with a sigh. “You don’t make that a habit, do you?” Garnet asked.

“Nah,” she chuckled. “I only fight when necessary, but I pack a mean punch,” she smiled at them.

“You know you didn’t have to tell us any of this, right?” Goldie pointed out.

“Yeah… but it’s only fair you know who you’re letting in. Lies of omission are still technically lies.”

“That is true,” Garnet smiled, but then he looked at the clock. “Oh dear, it’s getting close.”

“Go on,” Jewel smiled. “I’ll clean up.”

“Nonsense!” Garnet protested. “You’re the guest, and you already cooked us a wonderful breakfast! There’s still time to clean before we have to head to work,” he said as he rose.

“Speaking of, are you going to be okay here alone?” Goldie asked.

“Eh, I’m used to doing nothing,” Jewel chuckled softly. “Though… I rather be productive… um… can I ask for a favor then?”

“Depends,” Goldie smiled.

“Well… I know Classic Papyrus and Edgy both make and modify their own clothes and have a sewing room… do you guys have… anything like that?”

Goldie rose a brow, thinking about it. “Well, not a room, but Garnet does have something. Why, you wanna make yourself clothes?”

“Well, not me,” she smiled softly. “Error got hurt pretty bad and his outfit got ripped up. He’s stubborn and refuses to let anyone get him one, but I… thought I’d try and make him something he’d like. He’s not a shopping guy, ya know?”

“I suppose. Though you might want to try and change your clothes too. I mean, Onyx left you a nice set.”

“Yeah, I… don’t know about those,” she said with a slight blush.

“Why? You’d rock it, you got the curves.”

“It’s… pretty revealing.”

“Not really. It covers the important parts. Go on, try it out! You may like it! Besides, you’re in burned and blood-stained clothes, you can’t really save those.”

Jewel let out a sigh, her face still tinged red as she got up. Fine, she’d try it. Her clothes were starting to bother her… maybe she should try and call Ink after all…

When she went to change, Goldie got up and walked over to his brother. “Yo, bro. Jewel wants to know if she can borrow your sewing stuff. She wants to make her friend some clothes.”

“Well, I don’t mind, but I don’t really have the fabric for a full outfit.”

“Eh, I’ll have Alphys come by, she can take her shopping for what she wants for it. She can take a few minutes to help out.”

Goldie had already managed to call Alphys and talk to her about taking Jewel out for fabric. After all, she was being left alone… and no doubt guards were going to be around soon too, she might as well do something to keep her mind occupied. They’d probably try and find her a room of her own too. That way she didn’t have to try and sleep on that small couch. But as it neared the time for them to get going, Goldie realized Jewel still hadn’t come out of the bathroom. It had been a while…

“Jewel?” he knocked. “You okay in there?”

“Yeah,” she called back out, though her voice was a little on the uncertain side.

“Well, come on. We gotta get going, show us how to work hips like that,” he teased a little through the door. When silence was the only thing he got from behind the door, he started to get a little worried. “Jewel?” he called again. “Do they not fit? I can have Garnet grab some of his, see if they work, but he’s pretty narrow, I don’t think his would fit your curves.” When she still didn’t answer, “Jewel, either you answer me, or I’m coming in there. You know I can teleport.”

He heard the door start to unlatch and he pulled back, seeing the door open just slightly.

“I don’t like it…”

“Come on, Jewel, it can’t be that bad,” he smiled reassuringly, though he could barely see her.

Goldie stepped back as he saw the door open more. It was definitely one of Onyx’s outfits. She was a tad taller than her, so the pants did hang a little lower on her than on the blue-skinned beauty, but it was one of her halter crop tops. Jewel still held her arms over her chest like she was vulnerable, though Goldie honestly missed it at first.

“See? Look at you!” he grinned, having only seen a small glance. But when he opened his eyes, he really took her in.

She looked fine in the clothes… but she held herself like she was scared, ashamed… tears were lining her eyes and her face was red. Underneath her arms, he could see a variety of scars adorning her torso, some fresher than others. There was an old circle to the left, and under her arm were the freshest marks he had yet to see… her arms adorned a variety of gash scars, some self-inflicted on the lower arms, but a lot of gashes on her upper arms that suggested she went hand-to-hand in a knife fight several times in her life. And this shirt was backless… he wondered what she wasn’t showing.

“Yeah… look at me,” she muttered.

“Jewel… I…”

“Brother, what’s keeping…” Garnet called, walking around the corner, coming onto the scene. “Jewel, what’s wrong?” He approached, trying to put a hand on her arm but she flinched back and away from him.

“Jewel… I didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable,” Goldie tried. “I just thought… you can put your own clothes back on if you want.”

“No, you’re right… I can’t wear those… blood, burnt… but I can’t… stand this… I can’t do clothes like this, I’m ugly, I can’t-!”

“Jewel, you are **_not_** ugly!” Goldie quickly reassured.

“Dude, are you blind?! Look at me!” she barked back, her face getting redder.

“Jewel, calm down,” Garnet said softly, stepping in. “Please, go sit down on the couch, I’ll go see if I have something you’re more comfortable with,” he tried, before heading back to his room.

Jewel walked around Goldie and went to sit on the couch. Using the blanket she had been given the night before, she wrapped herself up, hiding her scars… hiding everything. Goldie turned and watched her, his soul sinking a bit in his chest. He honestly just thought she was uncomfortable borrowing Onyx’s clothes… that it might just not be what she was used to, but he thought she really did look good in it… but the scars did take him by surprise. There was no way to know with what she wore… His mind started to race about what exactly triggered this. The scars? Did she have more body issues than just that? He didn’t see how, but… he was a skeleton, a monster, and humans, well… he heard they were different, but how different he wasn’t sure.

Garnet eventually came out with a jacket and shirt. Unfortunately, neither worked. They looked like they might fit, but her shoulders were actually broader than his and her chest just made it not work... Garnet felt horrible about it, but there was nothing they could do.

Well, there was one thing…

“Just go to work, guys. I’m not going anywhere, no one’s going to see me… I can hide here,” Jewel muttered softly.

“Jewel, your scars don’t make you ugly,” Goldie tried one last time before she yelled at him again.

“Just go!” she barked, pulling the blankets closer around her. “Just… leave me alone…”

Goldie hesitated, seeing his brother flinch at her words. She wasn’t going to listen like this, was she? He pulled his phone out of his coat pocket and placed it on the table near the couch. “Just in case,” he said softly. “Alphys’ number is in there if you need anything, same with Garnet. Either of them can find me… if you need me,” he said softly, before turning with his brother.

“Goodbye, Jewel,” Garnet tried once more. “Please… don’t feel bad.”

Jewel didn’t say anything as the brothers left to go to work. She just curled more into that blanket and hid. The door closed behind them and she couldn’t help but feel a little bit better. No eyes to stare at her…

“Damn it, they’re not judging me,” she muttered softly as she wiped the tears from her eyes, but no matter what she did, they wouldn’t stop being replaced. At least they didn’t fall. She sighed and leaned back against the couch, half burying her face between the fabric and the blanket. “Hell, the media back home over glorified scars at one point,” she laughed to herself, but it was hollow.

Yes, the media over glorified scars… on men. Women were supposed to be these flawless porcelain dolls, either pale or golden. The stupid objectified standards she had been brainwashed to believe from an early age with all damn dolls her family tried to thrust onto her, only to be disgusted that she decided to play blocks with her brother. God forbid she show interest in something other than baby-making and home-maker hobbies. She never got the appeal of all those dolls… sure she had an imagination, but having a baby was something she lived from the age of four… why on earth would she want to pretend when she practically raised her brother?

“Heh, the only one who seemed to listen was Grandpa,” she muttered softly as she wound up going down memory lane. She remembered that Christmas when she was ten. She had always loved art but once she started getting older, she was told it wasn’t something she should show interest in. It was pathetic and she wasn’t a child anymore, she had to grow up. But her grandfather, her mother’s father, didn’t take crap from anyone and got her the very first full art set she had ever received. It was giant, almost half her size with every kind of medium imaginable for a young child. Watercolors, oil pastels, colored pencils, crayons, markers… and a giant sketch pad that couldn’t hold half the mediums it came with. She laughed softly at the memory.

“God, Grandpa… you’d hate me now…” she muttered softly. “I’m… so glad you died before you saw what I became… I don’t think you or Grandma could have taken it…”

She glanced under the blanket at some of the scars on her arm, remembering when she got them. She was in a fight at the tender age of eleven. It was the one major injury she had gotten before her grandfather had passed. She wasn’t the hardened fighter she was now. It was honestly one of the more serious fights she had been in during her starting years. Someone pulled out a knife and slashed at her. She remembered being so scared that she actually froze, allowing a cheap shot in her stomach. Her arm burned, her stomach ached… and she let loose and bit the hand as it came down at her, fangs sinking into the wrist as she almost crushed his arm… magic-empowered of course. No way she could have done it without her magic… as always, her magic bailed her out. She wasn’t anything without it… and that’s what she was again, wasn’t she? Without it again…

“God damn it, I’m going to spiral,” she muttered softly before getting up.

She let the blanket fall and felt herself freeze. She still felt so exposed and she felt the need to cover up. Even with no eyes upon her, she just felt so vulnerable… so judged. She wrapped her arms around her core, brushing up against the freshest of her scars. She headed back into the bathroom and looked at the marks left from Error’s bones as they pierced through her… the first one and the last ones…

“I can never let Error see these… it’ll be a few years before the scars will disappear… Heh… love how you can make the new scars disappear but not the old ones, Angel,” she muttered softly.

_“They were created before my powers were fully active in you. I cannot do anything about wounds I did not treat.”_

“Yeah, yeah, I remember the lecture from before,” she chuckled softly, but frowned slightly. “You can’t… prioritize this?” she asked, touching her stomach. “If Error sees them… I don’t think… they realize I still scar…”

_“Even if I did, it would still take some time. Why would you assume he would see them? Do you expect to have another revealing shirt?”_

“Ha! No… I just… I don’t know. What if I get into another fight and I get injured again? You know how they are, they’re not going to let me just heal on my own. Sans, Red, they’d all grab bandages.”

_“While I do approve of still using proper medical wrapping opposed to your “emergency bandages”, I suppose I can see your point. He would not take it well, it would seem. Not to mention the others.”_

“Oh god, Sans wouldn’t let it go…” she muttered softly.

_“If you wish me too, I can attempt to work on the surface scars when the damage is healed. I cannot do anything as of right now. But if I do, I cannot continue to heal the scar tissue inside that limits your movements right now. You know how your condition flares with it. Surface scars simply do not matter in the long run, they are simply cosmetic. I understand your concern, but perhaps it would be simpler to just… talk to him about it. He might feel guilt, but as you know, the past cannot be changed.”_

**_“Ugh, can you two just shut the fuck up?!”_ **

Jewel let out a soft chuckle, but remained silent. It was a fair point… She shook a little bit as she turned, examining each of the scars that were visible. She noted she tended to get a lot of knife wounds when she was a kid… Her hand ran over the two gunshot scars she had that were visible, on her stomach and in her shoulder before her hand ran over her chest where there were several others hidden away by the halter top… some never faded… she wouldn’t let them. Without the healing magic, when time didn’t flow, there was no way to fade then naturally.

**_“Stop dwelling, damn it, go do something.”_ **

That was probably a good idea. She left the bathroom and avoided the mirror so she didn’t start spiraling with the scars along her back. She hated really snooping but she really needed to distract herself. She started looking around before she found some paper and pencils sitting around. It wasn’t what she would normally sketch with, but beggars couldn’t be choosers. She grabbed the blanket, still feeling rather vulnerable and sat the table with it around her and she started to sketch. It felt weird at first. She hadn’t done in so long to begin with, then Error became her muse before he snuffed that back out again… and yet… here she was… nothing looked good at first and there were a lot of crinkled sheets of paper when erasing turned out to be too much.

It had been a few hours, but Alphys finally managed to get away. It was nearing her lunch break and she went to check on the human still inside Goldie and Garnet’s room. Of course, she had a meeting with the King to discuss it, and the guards. She was a temporary visitor and didn’t seem to cause any issues. A guard was with her though, and she wondered how the human would take this. So with a gentle knock, she steeled herself.

The door opened and the little dinosaur was confused to see Jewel wrapped with a blanket.

  
  
“A-are you okay?” she asked.

“Cold,” Jewel muttered a bit, blushing just slightly.

“Really? The entire palace is k-kept at the s-same temperature. Onyx doesn’t seem a-affected and she’s v-very sensitive to the c-cold.”

Jewel’s blush deepened. “I’m not used to wearing so little.”

Alphys questioning glance was quickly replaced with a knowing one when she remembered it was Onyx’s clothes she was wearing. “O-oh. D-did you want me to s-see if we have anything else? Something m-more… casual?” she tried.

“Please,” Jewel pleaded. “The pants are fine, if not a little lower than I want… a long enough t-shirt would be amazing!” She could handle some of the scars on her arms, the majority would be hidden away.

“O-okay. I’ll b-be right back. B-but…” she glanced to the guard.

“Yeah, I get that,” she chuckled softly. “I’m not going anywhere like this. I’ll leave the door unlocked so you can just come back in, kay Al?”

“A-all right. I’ll try not to be too long,” she said before scurrying off.

Jewel looked to the poor guard, before moving to the side to let him in before closing the door. She asked if he wanted anything to drink. It wasn’t hers by any means, and she let him know this, but she doubted Garnet especially would mind. She fetched the man a glass of water then went back to sit at the table and continued to draw. It was surprisingly silent while the tiny dinosaur was gone.

Alphys almost knocked when she returned before remembering she said to just come in. It felt weird, but… She opened the door and saw the guard kind of hovering over her now, but not in a threatening way. He was watching her sketch.

“How can you get so much detail?” he asked.

“Dude, it’s not much,” she laughed. “Just sketches to figure out a design.”

“Yeah, but, you draw the bones for him,” he pointed out.

“Well, yeah, need to get the proportions right. It can look wonky otherwise.”

“W-what are you w-working on?” Alphys asked as she walked over.

“Just design concepts. Once I find one I like I’ll go into making a pattern.”

Alphys looked over at the sketches all over the table. She chuckled a little. This brought her back to designing phases of her own, rough concept ideas. Hers were obviously more technical, but still. Though her eye caught the model of every one, which she had to redraw.

“Is this one of your Sans variant friends?” she asked.

“Yeah, that’s Error.”

She sweated. “He l-literally has the word “error” across his face?”

“And various parts of his body. He’s… kind of a corrupted version,” she chuckled. “He glitches out and crashes like an old computer too.”

“I suppose it is a g-good idea to take all f-factors into account, e-even that,” she smiled before handing Jewel a folded shirt. “I-I hope this is okay.”

“If it is, you’re a life-saver, Al!”

Alphys blushed and chuckled softly as Jewel went toward the bathroom. When she dropped the blanket, she saw all the scars on her back and instantly paled, as did the guard.

“Damn, she’s seen some shit,” the guard muttered under his breath.

Crude, but an accurate statement. She thought that Jewel might just be uncomfortable with revealing clothes. Which might still be the case, as she herself didn’t like anything revealing, but… with all of that… Alphys could feel her anxiety spiking. She wouldn’t leave her house without being covered!

When Jewel came back out, she saw the two staring at her. Granted, the shirt was plain, still a form fitting shirt and rather thin, Jewel felt a hundred times better. Her arms were still showing her scars, but her torso was covered and she didn’t feel as exposed. Still exposed but not as bad.

“Thanks, Al. This feels so much better.”

“I-I’m glad I could help,” she smiled at her, before trying to distract from her current line of questioning forming her in mind. “S-so… i-is this why S-sans asked me to take you out to the s-store?”

Jewel rose a brow. “He asked you to what now? When?” Probably when she was in the bathroom… “I mean… yeah, I’d really appreciate that, but I have no money to pay with right now. Well, not a lot,” she said as she went back to her old clothes, pulling out what Gold she had in her pockets with her phone.

“Don’t w-worry about payment. The Royal Harem m-members g-get all kinds of l-luxuries. Papyrus tends to m-make his clothes h-himself. Or rather t-the more ornate ones.”

“Are you telling me Goldie told you to charge it to him?”

Oh, she was using their other names? Probably logical, considering her travels. “W-well… yes.”

She groaned a little. “Damn it, skeleton,” she muttered. “I don’t like owing people…”

“I-I’m sure he d-doesn’t see it like that. H-he’s just trying to help you. A-after all, you’re s-stuck until your powers return or your f-friend is reachable.”

She sighed a little. “Fine… I’ll deal with paying him back later. Can’t really argue when he’s not here.”

Alphys smiled shyly, but motioned for the door. The two of them, followed by the guard, walked through the corridor. It wasn’t as if everything was in this particular building, but the Royal Harem was attached to a variety of other places… Jewel got to explore a little with Alphys. She didn’t mind the guard, really, she understood it, though it probably wasn’t helping her anxiety any. She tried to focus on Alphys and doing the shopping she had been promised. This was for Error, after all. And… really… who would have better quality fabric than a store in a Lust world? It was weird, but it was one of the more fashion-forward worlds, more unique and vibrant clothing… nothing nearly as casual as what Sans normally wore… or Error. Still, nothing there was really his style, but the fabric choices… well… she couldn’t really pass it up. She hadn’t done anything creative in a while, minus making Blueberry a broach. She needed an outlet, she… She couldn’t really survive most of this without it.

Instead of focusing on any of her problems, however, Jewel buried it and listened to Alphys as she questioned a variety of things about human culture and society. Jewel told her that her world and experiences were probably different, but basic things, like how humans worked, common themes, stuff like that, she happily explained for her. It was a distraction. And then human reproduction came up. It… wasn’t something she expected, though she couldn’t quite blame her line of questioning. Given their problems in this AU, any knowledge regarding practices might be useful. Humans couldn't use their souls for breeding. After all, humans were very physical creatures. And sure, monsters could breed like that as well, but given their circumstances, it didn’t always work that way. Especially for Onyx, being a female monster but in a sire role.

“Listen, Al, if you really want to know, I can get you some books once my powers are stable again, but really… I doubt humans are going to have any help for your right now. Our bodies are too physical and I’m the only human who even realizes we have souls. Souls are more of a figurative thing to most and not all believe in it. It’s become a religious thing.”

“Really? H-humans don’t realize th-they have souls?”

“Nope. They can’t see them. But there are some that believe plants and rocks have souls.”

“N-normal plants and rocks don’t have souls,” she rose a brow.

“Humans are a weird bunch, Al. There’s so much, it’s hilarious.”

“But you s-seem to know m-more about monsters…”

“Well, when you have nothing to do but study for years on end…”

“F-fair point,” Alphys conceded. “S-so do you have everything?”

“I think so,” Jewel said with a smile. She so owed Goldie for this.

“Then l-let’s get y-you back,” she smiled.


	23. Dusting for Clues

# Chapter 23 – Dusting for Clues

Stretch had been out of his mind with worry. Blueberry didn’t have a scratch on him, but when he saw him break down, it was too much. He didn’t talk to him, he just broke down crying until he passed out. See, this is why he didn’t want him to be a royal guard. This wasn’t the first time he had seen action. After all, he helped Dream, but that was always more of a game in his eyes. This… this was bad. Nightmare came to their world… came after Blueberry… and Stretch wasn’t going to let that slide. Oh hell no. He’d find a way to blast that little bastard into a gooey mess.

“Brother?”

Stretch quickly turned around from his spot on the couch, looking at the stairs as Blueberry came down. His eyes looked dark and he actually looked upset, which worried him to no end. Blueberry usually could force a smile on his face, and while it didn’t always fool him, it was a constant he appreciated.

“Sans, how are you feeling?” he asked quickly.

“I’m fine,” he lied. Blatantly. It was obvious, and that alone put Stretch on edge.

“You don’t look fine,” Stretch protested. “You should go back to bed.”

“I can’t… I… I need to see Jewel.”

Stretch paled a little as he tried to distract himself, and Blueberry, by lighting a cigarette in the house.

“Papy, you know I don’t like it when you smoke in the house!” he barked at him, grabbing the cigarette straight from his mouth. And while he would fight him on it, this was the first time he snatched it from between his teeth.

Stretch stared at his little brother. “Sans, really, are you all right? You’re not acting like yourself.”

“I just… I need to see Jewel!” he barked at him.

Stretch’s brow knitted together in concern. He didn’t know what seeing Jewel had to do with any of this, but… “She’s… not here, bro.”

“What? Where is she?” Blueberry demanded.

“I don’t know. She… hasn’t come back.”

Fear tinted his face in a dark blue as Blueberry started to panic. Her magic wasn’t up to normal levels, she was still recovering from the last coma… The wound in her back looked pretty deep. “I need to get Ink!” he shouted as he tried to push past his brother, only to get grabbed around his middle.

“Sans, knock it off! You’re in no condition to be running around!”

“I’m not hurt, I’m fine!” he squirmed against his brother’s grip. “I need to find her, Papy! She’s hurt, she can’t go into another coma! I have to help her!”

“She’s not here, bro! You can’t help her if we don’t know where she is!”

“That’s why I need Ink! He can find her! S-she probably went to see Classic or Red!” He prayed he was right in that regard. Maybe she went home to the anti-void! Maybe she went to the Doodlesphere! She’d be safe in those spots!

“Sans, you have to stop!” Stretch tried, but his brother fought him with an intensity he wasn’t used to. He pulled himself from his grip and bolted. “Damn it!”

Stretch tried to teleport in front of his brother, but he refused to listen to reason. He ran all the way back to his station. He wasn’t sure why but given it was the last place he saw Jewel, he could sort of understand the panic-filled logic.

“Sans, stop!” he tried to grab him, only stop as he saw the tears in his brother’s eyes. “Sans,” his voice got softer. “Come on, talk to me. What’s got you so riled up?”

“She… she’s never had anyone… really believe in her…” Blueberry started to break down. “Sh-she needs… she needs positivity,” he cried. “I can’t just leave her alone!”

Stretch sighed softly before letting his brother go but held him firmly by his shoulders. “You can’t let panic cloud your mind, bro. You can’t do anything if you’re not thinking clearly.”

Blueberry sobbed, but he tried to calm himself down. “I… I need to get Ink… please, brother, let me do this!”

Stretch sighed. “I don’t like how you attach so quickly to people… but all right,” he relented. He was only going to resent him if he said no. And he knew Ink… sort of. Didn’t quite approve but he was okay… “Call me if you need me, okay?” He would stay… but he had to check on a certain human.

“I will,” Blueberry promised before his brother teleported away.

Jewel’s drink was still left by his brother’s stand. He dumped it out into the snow, screaming for Ink, hoping he’d get the message. Nothing. He ran toward the river, throwing rocks and calling for Ink through that, hoping he’d get the message… After about ten minutes of it, Blueberry had to face facts. Ink wasn’t in the Doodlesphere to watch the portals. He gripped his skull, trying to wrack his brain to figure anything out. He couldn’t get ahold of Dream, Ink wasn’t home… there was only one other person he could call for help… and he was desperate enough to try.

“If Jewel told him she was coming here… he’s probably checking in on her, right?” he thought as he looked around. He wouldn’t be able to see any of his portals… not that it meant anything. He started gathering sticks, rocks, anything he could. He started writing out “Error” along the ground, hoping to get his attention. He didn’t leave the river, trying Ink every so often… it was a waiting game that he really didn’t like…

Error really didn’t like the idea of her trying to hang out with Blueberry of all people. He could understand Dream, but Blueberry?? He was very vocal about his protests when she told him where she was going. At least she told him, he supposed. She could have just gone like he did. Though it was a safe enough timeline, it wasn’t like she was going into a Genocide run or anything… still… she was going to thank that stupid diabetes-inducing shrimp of a skeleton!

He had checked on her before. She was laughing with Blueberry, messing with that idiot brother of his. He actually laughed when she dumped all that snow on him. That had been worth it! So he left her be. Let her have her fun… but it had been a while. When he checked again, Blueberry was asleep and Stretch was sitting down with a drink. She probably left. She did say she was going to talk to Classic, so he tried to check on him. Nothing. Maybe she found Dream? He would hop around and he wouldn’t know.

Still, it had been too long for his liking since he had seen her. So he checked again. UnderSwap was the last place he had seen her… Knowing her she’d hop out to go somewhere and come back with something for them. It was how she was. But when he saw Blueberry by the river, with his name spelled out in a variety of different spots… well… his interest was grabbed. Why was he trying to get in touch with him? He wanted nothing to do with that little bastard. But he hadn’t seen her… and now he was legitimately worried.

“He probably pissed her off and she ran away,” he muttered to himself, hoping that was the case.

Blueberry was getting dejected, no one was answering him. Jewel was still missing… He couldn’t give up but what could he do?

He heard a pixelating sound and his head shot up as he saw Error walking through a portal. His glare was fierce and it was fixated on him, but he didn’t care! “Error!” He had never been more relieved to see him!

“You got my attention,” he practically hissed. “What do you want?”

“It was Nightmare!” he cried out, which instantly made Error lose the majority of his edge, his eyes growing wide as he stared at Blueberry. “Jewel teleported him away to save us, but she hasn’t come back!”

“What?! How long ago!?” he demanded, so, so close to just grabbing Blueberry by his scarf.

“It’s been a few hours,” Blueberry explained, tears in his eyes. “She got hurt by Dust and-!”

“Dust?!” God damn it, things could never be easy!

“She… she said she would take them away! She hurt them, they haven’t been back! I was hoping she was with you! Or one of the others!”

Error growled a little. He couldn’t really blame the little blue blot for worrying. Dust and Nightmare? Granted, it was only two of them, but for a surprise attack. “She hasn’t been with Classic, not that I’ve seen. I haven’t seen her since she pranked your brother.”

“That wasn’t long before,” Blueberry told him. “M-maybe she went to Red’s?”

“Why the hell would she recover in UnderFell?”

“Maybe she didn’t have a choice! He might have been closer, I don’t know! Please, we have to check!”

“We?” he hissed at him. But even Error wasn’t immune to the puppy-eyes of Blueberry. “Ugh, fine. But you go check with Classic, I’ll go to UnderFell,” he said, opening a portal to the main timeline.

“Right! Divide and conquer! Come get us as soon as you know anything!” Blueberry agreed as he jumped through the portal.

“Trusting idiot,” he muttered. “He’s lucky I don’t want to deal with Classic right now.”

Error closed the portal behind Blueberry and opened a portal to UnderFell. Unlike with Blueberry, who he dropped off slightly away from Sans’ house, Error didn’t have a problem going directly into the line of fire with Red.

Red was sitting in his house. It was dinner time after all, and it was another pasta night. Edgy’s skills had gotten better since he had Jewel to compare to now, and he was determined to beat the human in something. He was going to have to thank her for that. He would have if a certain someone didn’t kidnap her the second she was healed. It still irked him. He had barely any time with her and this was the second time she had come to him hurt. Technically he was called to help her this time, but still…

However, when he saw a pixelated portal open up in his kitchen, with a certain black skeleton walking through, his eye lit up and he was ready to go. He shot up from his seat, the chair failing and he lunged for him. Error, however, was ready and quickly grabbed Red with his strings, slamming him down into the floor. Edgy was quickly up and Error just summoned a bunch of red bones and a black blaster, glaring at Edgy.

“Don’t even try it. I’m not in the mood.”

“Ya got some fuckin’ balls showin’ your face ‘round here after what ya did!” Red growled, fighting against his strings.

“Shut up,” Error rolled his eyes. “Fucking hate me later. Has Jewel been here or not?”

Red stopped struggling and looked up at him. “She’s missin’ again?!”

So no, she hadn’t… “Nightmare went after her in UnderSwap. She’s been missing since she ended the fight.” All hostility was gone as Error let Red go and recalled his bones and blaster.

Red got up, rubbing his wrist a bit as he looked at Error. “Have ya checked wit Classic?”

“Blueberry’s there now,” Error explained.

“Excuse me,” Edgy barked, not meaning it in the slightest. “You think you can just leave this mess here?!”

“Boss, this is serious! I’ll deal wit it later,” he said, glancing to Error, who opened a portal. The two ran through before Edgy could do anything.

“I’m still pissed at’cha,” Red muttered.

“Don’t give a fuck,” Error muttered back.

They walked through the snow, finding Sans and Blueberry at his station. They were waiting for them. Sans’ eyes narrowed at Error, he was still upset too, but Error didn’t give a damn about any of that right now.

“She hasn’t been here either,” Blueberry told Error as they approached.

“I told you I hadn’t seen her come by,” Error muttered.

“What do you mean?” Sans glared at him.

“She was going to talk to you after the marshmallow here,” he lazily motioned to Blueberry. “Unless she found Dream with him.”

“Maybe she’s wit Ink?” Red suggested. “If she got stuck, she knows how to call ‘im, right?”

“That might be why he didn’t answer when I tried to get his attention,” Blueberry was hopeful.

Everyone looked at Error, who, annoyed, opened a portal to the Doodleshere. He hated being the only one to taxi these three around the multiverse, but really, it didn’t hurt too much… But upon getting there, Ink was nowhere to be seen.

“Where is he?” Blueberry worriedly whined.

“You know how distracted he gets,” Error muttered.

“Well, we don’t need Ink to look at his portals, right?” Sans asked. “Maybe Jewel’s by something we can see into. Then Error can go get her.”

“Better than sittin’ ‘round I suppose,” Red agreed as they all headed to the various liquid portals of the AUs.

Error just stared at them. “They have no idea how many worlds are out there…” he muttered.

“But it’s all we have,” Blueberry turned to him.

Damn it. She found him without any portals or any windows… if only he could re-create that… Error groaned as he found himself before the portals Ink had set up… a cluttered, disorganized mess. Of course it was…

“How the fuck does he find anythin’ in this bullshit?” Red grumbled, red eyes darting around from portal to portal. He and Sans were quickly getting overwhelmed with the sheer number of them.

“This doesn’t even include the worlds that don’t have natural water,” Error explained. “You’d be surprised what they create.”

“I can see why you destroy ‘em, there’s too fuckin’ many,” Red muttered.

Finally, someone else who got it! But out of the corner of his eye, Error saw something. “Well, I’ll be damned.”

Everyone turned to him as he opened a portal and with his strings, quickly grabbed and pulled in a very confused golden-clad skeleton.

“Dream!” Blueberry exclaimed,

Dream blinked as he looked around at the group, who was very much without the caretaker of this place. “What’s… going on?” he asked cautiously as the portal closed behind him.

“Jewel’s missing! It was Nightmare, he--!”

“What??” Dream exclaimed.

“Calm down, Blue,” Sans spoke up, finally. “I think everyone deserves an explanation,” he said, before glancing at Error. “From you too. Don’t think you’re off the hook for kidnapping Jewel before.”

“Whatever, it’s not important right now.”

“He’s right, ya know. Jewel’s been targeted by that damn blob again if he’s got ‘er…”

“He… doesn’t have her… I think,” Blueberry spoke up, all eyes turning to him.

“Tell us what happened, kid,” Red encouraged.

“It… it was just… normal, ya know? She was about to go, I really didn’t want her to, we were having fun. But in a second, everything changed. I guess she sensed Nightmare because she threw up a barrier at the same time he attacked. It… it was weird, he… couldn’t move afterward.”

“I thought magic didn’t affect him,” Error questioned, looking to Dream, who shrugged.

“Remind me to ask her what she did, that would be helpful to know,” he commented.

“I just… saw this shock come out at him, he was stuck on the ground.”

“Do you know why he was there?” Sans asked. “Did he track her to your world?”

Blueberry fidgeted a little. “No… He… said he came there for me…”

Everyone stared at the anxious skeleton, Dream quickly catching on.

“He went after you to get to me… Blue…” He felt horrible.

“Once he saw Jewel was there, he seemed confident… but so was she. He tried to make her anxious by telling us he didn’t come alone, but she _knew_ already,” Blueberry said, looking up. “She knew he wasn’t alone and knew _who_! She knew Dust was there too, knew exactly where he was! It was… surreal.”

“Who’s Dust?” Sans asked, looking over to Error.

“You, but at LV20. He wiped out his world to kill the kid, even Papyrus.”

Sans paled. No way in hell that would happen! Yeah, he had been desperate to stop the kid, but… that desperate? No way in hell!

“How did she know about him?” Dream asked.

“Well, she did mention she knew of other murderous AUs when introducing me to these knuckleheads,” Red explained. “But we can ask her more when we find her. It sounds like she had da upper hand, what happened?”

“Dust came out and tried to break the barrier with a blaster. Papy and I both thought it would break with a point-blank attack like that, but it didn’t. A shockwave blasted Dust back and stunned Nightmare again. Jewel seemed so confident… but then she said she forgot about the karmic damage…”

“And at LV20, that would really hurt,” Sans paled.

“But she’s not,” Error started, everyone turning to him. He groaned, but fuck it. “She’s not pure like you assholes. She’s helped me murder AUs and didn’t even flinch.”

“Doesn’t really matter,” Red piped in before the fighting could start. “Even at a lower LV, dat much could really hurt.”

“She said she couldn’t take another hit like that,” Blueberry interrupted. “She changed tactics… she distracted Dust for Papy and me to stall him. Then she went after Nightmare. She… did some stuff and then teleported them away… and she hasn’t… been back…”

“Did she go into another coma?” Sans asked worriedly.

“She said… she couldn’t do that again. She might never wake up,” Blueberry said worriedly. “That even Dream and I might not be enough to pull her out.”

Worry was definitely filling the room. How were they going to find her? There were so many alternate worlds to check.

“Can you track her?” Error then spoke up, looking at Dream. With confusion, Error continued, “Nightmare could sense negativity and track it. Can you do the same for her positivity?”

“It’s… possible, but I don’t really know it off the top of my head. I wouldn’t be able to tell the difference from anyone else’s.”

Silence ran over the group for a moment as they tried to figure out what to do. Then they heard a soft tap. Everyone turned to Red, who had his phone up to his ear, and a slightly annoyed expression.

“What are you doing?” Sans asked him.

“She gave me her number before,” he explained. “But it goes right ta voicemail. Either it’s dead or her phone’s off for one reason or ‘nother.”

“Well, at least you tried,” Sans sighed. “Try again and leave her a message to try and call us back if she can. She might be hiding, who knows.”

“Her, hide? Doesn’t seem likely,” Error scoffed at the idea.

“If her magic is gone, she could be waiting for an opportunity to slip by, you don’t know what’s going on with her!”

“She wouldn’t hide, she’d fight!” Error barked at him.

“Stop!” Blueberry shouted over them, tears in his eyes as he shook. “Please, stop!”

Error scoffed a little at the crying skeleton, who was being comforted by Dream. “Whatever,” he rolled his eyes before opening a portal.

“And where do you think you’re going?” Sans snapped at him.

“Dusttale. If Jewel took them anywhere, their “home” states might have overridden what she planned to do. It’s worth a shot.”

“You’re going to go where that psycho lives?”

“I’ve worked with that psycho before. He won’t hurt me. Besides, he’s got a soul, won’t take me long to finish him off he was stupid enough to try.”

“But if Nightmare’s there,” Dream pointed out, “You could be in trouble. I don’t think anyone should be going anywhere alone.”

“You wouldn’t survive in Dusttale,” Error spat at him. “Even without anyone there, it reeks of death and you know what that breeds. It’s why Nightmare likes it and why I haven’t deleted it yet.” He wasn’t getting into a territorial dispute with anyone over an already empty world.

“Maybe we should split up to where there’s an AU traveler in each,” Sans suggested.

Error rolled his eyes. “Fine. Thirteen can come with me, Blueberry and Dream can go wherever they want, and you can wait for the ink stain to come back.”

“Why Red?” Sans questioned.

“Because Nightmare wanted him to join him. He won’t set off alarm bells if he catches us in Dusttale.”

Sans couldn’t argue that point. He sighed a bit, before looking to Dream and Blueberry. “Guess I’ll hold the fort down here.”

Red grumbled as he walked forward, hands in his pockets. “Ya know I’m only doing dis ‘cuz I wanna find Jewel, right?”

“Like I’d go anywhere with you otherwise,” Error rolled his eyes as he headed through his portal, Red following before it closed behind them.

“It’s… strange to see the kind of people who care about her,” Blueberry spoke up softly.

“She does have a wide range of friends,” Dream agreed.

“If she even considers us as such,” Sans bitterly commented.

“Please, stop,” Blueberry pleaded. “Ink’s told you she wants to talk to you. And she was going to when she was leaving my world before all of this.

Sans sighed. He was just being bitter and he knew it. Error took her and he was mad… if her magic was gone and still not fully back, he couldn’t blame her. That might have been why she went to see Blueberry first, his positivity was key for Dream to figure out how to heal her, she might have been charging with him.

“Sorry, Blue,” he said softly. “So, those two have a game plan, what about you two? Anywhere you think she might go?”

“Jewel did mention Error takes her to Outertale… and then there’s the AU we were just at for lunch. She has this tree there she likes to think at,” Blueberry spoke up. “But everyone’s human there.”

“Then… how did you..?” Sans questioned while Dream also looked a little confused.

“I didn’t mind the stares, and Jewel came up with a good excuse, no one questioned it,” Blueberry explained with a small smile. “It was… fun. But… I don’t think she’d go there after this.”

“Well, there are AUs we can try,” Dream said softly, thinking. “Maybe she wound up in a random one by mistake if her powers fizzled out.”

“Let’s hope it’s a peaceful one,” Sans sighed.

Red glanced around as they stepped into what felt like a familiar place… only even darker than what he remembered. It felt more like his world than any other he had been to so far… except it was too quiet. Even quieter than after everyone got wind of Edgy coming into town with a bad mood.

“Damn,” he muttered a bit.

“Be quiet,” Error told him. “We’re the only living things here now.”

“Ya said… he killed da kid, right?” he questioned.

“Yeah.”

“So… why hasn’t it… reset?”

“Because I have the soul,” Error said plainly. “If the world doesn’t get deleted, the kid’s soul has to be removed. It’s in my collection.”

“You… have a collection of human souls?” Red blanched a little. “And Jewel’s okay wit dat?”

“It’s plain to see in the anti-void, I’ve never hid it. She’s never commented on it. Now shut up.”

Damn, Error was scarier than he thought. And what about Jewel to just be okay with… souls all around her? He silently followed behind Error as they looked around, looking for signs of life. Footprints in the snow, anything…

Their footfalls did not go unnoticed. Dust lingered around a corner, clutching his chest, or rather, what was left of it. His red and blue eye emitting purple smoke as he glanced to who had bothered to enter. He would never admit it, but he was glad it was Error. But why was he here? With the Sans that refused Nightmare’s offer… interesting…

“Ya know, stalking around like that is gonna get you blasted,” Dust said with a grin.

Red couldn’t help the back-step he took as he stared directly into the eyes of this Sans. It was… disturbing. In a familiar way, and he didn’t like it.

“You can try,” Error replied cockily. “You don’t look so good.”

“Heh, humans are bitches to kill,” he muttered.

“Heh, what, run into another one? Not enough LV this time?”

“Nightmare had me hold back, wanted this one alive. Nearly cost us both, damn psycho,” he muttered.

“Psycho, huh?” Error rose a brow, seemingly disinterested. Internally, he wanted to just wring his neck for insulting his best friend. He deserved what he got, plain and simple.

Dust’s eyes narrowed as he pulled his jacket back, blood seeping through his white shirt from where his ribs had been shattered and dusted. He lifted his shirt, showing his missing sternum and ribs, his soul exposed and… cracked. “Mother fucker, no sane person does damage like this, believe me, I should know!” he laughed. “She literally went through me and hit me straight in my soul!”

Red visibly paled and Error was honestly surprised, uncertain how to process this.

“She went for Nightmare’s too!” he shouted at him, his maniacal grin growing. “Boss is insane if he thinks he can just use her! Psycho has no problem plunging her hands straight into his chest! You got to have a serious instability to not see the crazy!”

“Where is Nightmare?” Error tried, deciding to not focus on this information just yet. He’d start to spiral down a rabbit hole of thoughts and he couldn’t do that in front of Dust.

“The fuck should I know,” he muttered. “Crazy bitch grabbed us and next thing I know I’m here. He’s probably recovering or hiding his shame,” he laughed. “That was not a fucking fair fight, damn! Coulda used you.”

“Heh, you always need me to save your asses,” Error smirked. “You let me know where she is, I’ll go pay her a visit.”

“Dunno. But you should go see Nightmare, he’s probably already plotting something.”

“I’ll think about it, got my own shit to do,” Error smirked before opening up a portal. Red dove in and Error quickly followed.

Dust watched them leave before his smile grew. “Lookin’ for her, huh? Nightmare will love to hear this.”


	24. Reunion

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **Goldie, Garnet, Onyx LG!Alphys and LustGold belong to S-E-Sagas**

# Chapter 24 – Reunion

Goldie wasn’t quite looking forward to coming back home tonight. He had managed to put it out of his mind while working, but what happened that morning still bothered him. He pushed Jewel into wearing something she clearly didn’t want to and he felt downright low about it. Seeing her that upset, despite not really knowing her... well, there was enough misery in the world, he didn’t need to be making more. Especially not over a stupid outfit.

When he and Garnet got back home, he was surprised to see a guard just… sitting there. He seemed rather comfortable. It kind of irked him. He understood why he was there, Jewel did just pop out of nowhere and they were rather valuable to the Underground as a whole, but he wasn’t even doing… anything! He wasn’t even the same room as Jewel!

And where was she, anyway? It wasn’t until he got further in the room did he smell it. She was cooking? Why was she cooking?

Garnet was the first to stride into the kitchen, Goldie following behind him. They saw Jewel standing at the stove, wearing a different shirt than they left her in, mixing something in a pot. It smelled good, he wasn’t going to lie. But Garnet loved to cook, so he was worried about how he would take this.

“Oh, hey guys,” she said as she turned, having noticed their presence before they made themselves vocally known.

“Jewel,” Garnet started, “What are you doing?”

“Oh, um… sorry if you had something planned. I just… well, I needed a distraction and I wanted to apologize and thank you guys for putting me up and everything… I can’t really do much else at the moment…”

Garnet let out a sigh. “I understand that, but you should be resting,” he protested just slightly, going over to the stove to see what she was working on.

She was mixing gravy on the stove, the oven loaded with something that looked equivalent to a roast with a variety of vegetables lined around it.

“Yeah… I don’t really sleep well in places I don’t know, let alone with someone watching me,” she admitted softly.

“Well, at least you got a lazy guard,” Goldie tried to joke.

“Dude hovers when he’s not sitting. Kept breathing down my neck while I was sketching, but the fact I’m cooking for you doesn’t even register to him? Kinda sucks at his job, doesn’t he?” she said quietly.

Goldie couldn’t help but chuckle. “At least you’re feeling better.”

“Still not completely comfortable in these clothes,” she admitted, “But it’s better… sorry about freaking out on you before. None of this is your fault.”

“Well, I did push you to wear something you weren’t comfortable with. I do apologize for that,” Goldie said as he rubbed the back of his neck. “But… I still stand by what I said, you know. You’re not ugly.”

The expression on Jewel’s face told him that she didn’t believe him. He could have argued if she said something, but she didn’t. He could have tried to prove her wrong if she gave him something…

“Is this because of your scars?” Garnet then asked.

Goldie tensed just a little, but when he saw Jewel wasn’t really reacting, he took a breath. The last thing he wanted was a repeat of this morning.

“It’s… not just the scars… it’s the memories attached to them… the pain, the regret… but… yeah, heh, they don’t look nice either. I don’t mind the blade ones so much… I was a stupid kid, I can live with those but…” Jewel leaned heavily on the counter, her head against the cabinet as she did. “I know you’re both dying to ask, and are only holding back because of how I reacted this morning. Scars you don’t understand or recognize… others you do…”

“I… understand,” Garnet said softly. “I have a scar on my right scapula… I… don’t like showing it, and I hide it… even when…”

“Heh, especially when, right?” Jewel chuckled softly, just emotionally exhausted.

Garnet went over and gently put a hand on her shoulder. “You don’t have to show us anything. You don’t have to tell us anything. But, the Goldie’s right. The scars themselves don’t make you ugly. You’re right, they tell a story, and that’s your story to tell. If you’re not comfortable telling it, you’re not required to, to anyone.” He then smiled at her. “But that doesn’t mean you can’t find something nice either! That’s all Goldie wanted before! You wear bulky clothes that hide your figure. You can still cover up and look amazing without showing your scars! Look at me,” he grinned, stepping back and almost posing. “I don’t really show off my bones like Goldie does, but I’m still sexy,” he grinned.

Jewel blinked, not having really expected that kind of talk from a Papyrus. She couldn’t help but chuckle a little, unable to stop a smile from gracing her features.

“Well, don’t be offended if I don’t openly agree. I don’t really do “sexy” and all that. I’m not attracted to people in a “normal” way.”

Goldie rose a brow. “Huh? What do you mean “normal” way? Either you are or you aren’t.”

“It’s easier for monsters, I think. You guys just… know. Humans have this whole… categorization system. I mean, females can sire a child. In this world it’s not quite the same, but…” she sighed a little, taking the gravy off the heat and turning to face them. “Humans are male or female when we’re born. But there’s just… so much, trying to explain it just makes my head want to explode. There’s straight relationships, gay relationships, poly relationships, transgender, asexuality…”

“Wait, slow down,” Goldie put his hands up, a brow raised. “What… the hell?”

Jewel chuckled a little. “There’s a wide variety of sexual and romantic orientations for humans. It’s not… it’s so confusing, humans have to label everything. Monsters can follow the same type but you don’t dwell on it, which is refreshing, honestly. You have straight, or heterosexual, that’s the classic male and female relationship. Then you have homosexual, which is either two men in a relationship or two women, gay and lesbian respectively as further clarification. Then there are people who are born one gender, but don’t feel like they belong in that gender so they identify as the opposite. Then there are the people who don’t identify as either gender and prefer they-them pronouns…”

Goldie and Garnet just stared at her for a moment, before looking to each other then back to her.

“Why the hell are all the labels necessary? You love who you love, that’s just complicated!” Goldie rolled his eyes.

“Hey, don’t look at me, I didn’t make it,” she chuckled. “Just how our society is. There’s a lot of hate for it too…” She rubbed her neck a little. “People will attack others based on what they are, who they love… all kinds of shit. I’m… glad I got out when I did.”

The two looked at her, seeing the relieved look on her face. It didn’t sound like a nice place, where she was before. Neither of them could be certain if all human cities, cultures, were like hers, but they were glad she escaped, for her sake.

“So… what are you then, if you’re not “normal”?” Garnet asked.

“Huh? Oh!” she chuckled. “I’m Demi.”

“Demi?” Goldie questioned.

“Demisexual and Demiromantic. I’m not… well, there’s not really a “type” for me. Ya know how some people like someone tall or short, or prefer a certain color of eyes, that kind of thing? That… doesn’t apply to me. I’m not attracted to anyone unless I have a strong emotional connection to them. So it… doesn’t matter to me what race, gender… though I do tend to sway toward hetero-romantic most of the time, I won’t just… jump in. I don’t start feeling anything unless there’s a reason for me to connect to them, ya know?”

Goldie looked over and chuckled. “And that right there is how most monsters are,” he grinned. “But you really don’t feel physically attracted to someone? Nothing grabs you as sexy?”

“Not really. Well, maybe eyes,” she chuckled. “Mine change color depending on situations, and some you can just get lost in.”

Goldie chuckled. “Well, I’m off the market,” he teased.

“Goldie!” Garnet scolded.

Jewel chuckled. “Don’t worry. We barely know each other and I don’t do one-night stands, sorry,” she winked at him. “Not gonna get to know what it’s like to sleep with a human any time soon.”

Goldie smiled. She was feeling better. That was nice. He didn’t like seeing her so upset. Her smile reached her eyes finally. He sort of understood where that could be attractive, many complimented his after all.

“So,” Goldie started. “I have tomorrow off. How about I take you to pick out some clothes that you actually like?”

“Only if you let me pay.”

“A human actually has Gold?” he rose a brow.

“Yeah, I do. I don’t have much on my person but I do have plenty stored away.”

“And how do you plan to get to it? You can’t teleport.”

“Well… I can teleport things other than me, ya know. Including my wallet.”

Goldie sighed. “You shouldn’t be using your magic with your soul damaged.”

“It doesn’t take much.”

“If you can’t do it, you can just pay me back, okay?” He really didn’t care, but if it made her feel better.

She pouted a little but sighed, smiling. “Fine.”

Dinner was amazing, the guard even joining in. He would have to report everything in, and another guard would be standing outside during the night, but he was certain there was no threat. Despite her soul being hidden, she seemed genuine and shared enough to make everyone trust her. Even if it had been such a short time. He found it strange, however…

Despite her protests, Goldie did take her shopping without her paying. She was adamant about paying him back but he kind of just brushed it off. She did wind up getting a temporary room to stay so she wasn’t bothering the boys, but with her working on her gift for her friend, Garnet let her come in while they were gone, and even when they were around. She was nice to talk to. She also found out Goldie’s little stash of comics and started going nerd-talk with him. Garnet was thrilled, he had a distraction on hard days. His eyes always lit up when talking comic books and Batman seemed to be a favorite between them both.

The time would come, however, where she would be healed enough to try and go home. She didn’t want to leave her friends worrying about her. She left Alphys her old, broken phone for her to mess with. She had asked many questions about it, though she did take the sim-card and memory drive out. Some important stuff was in there for her and she wasn’t willing to let it go.

“You’ll come back and visit, right?” Garnet asked.

“Of course!” Jewel grinned. “Can’t leave my buds hanging. Besides, I still need to pay Goldie back for everything.”

“No, you don’t,” he laughed.

She stuck her tongue out at him, causing everyone to chuckle. “Besides, I need to give you my number when I get back so we can keep in touch no matter where I am.”

“Could I… ask questions about humanity?” Alphys asked as she pressed her fingers together nervously.

“Well, sure. Don’t expect me to know everything, but I’ll answer what I can.”

Hugs were exchanged, with Goldie being last. Jewel leaned in and hugged him a little tighter. “And you take it easy, okay?”

“Heh, it’s me. Since when do I do anything seriously?”

“Good question,” Garnet retorted.

Jewel chuckled a little, but gave him a knowing look.

“Alright, alright,” he smiled at her. “If it’ll make you feel better.”

“And I know you won’t listen anyway,” she sighed with a smile. “I’ll just have to check on you more frequently."

Goldie chuckled. “Won’t complain about that. But you should get going. It’s been four days, your friends are probably losing their mind.”

“Yeah,” she sweated a little.

“Good luck!” Alphys called out.

“See ya, punk! Don’t leave us hangin’ too long!” Onyx grinned.

“I’ll make sure to have some food ready for you when you come!” Garnet smiled.

Jewel pulled back a bit from the group, looking them over. She never thought she’d want to be in a lust variant, but… Well, LustGold was pretty amazing with amazing people. She would definitely be back.

“Later guys!” she winked with a flash of a peace sign before teleporting off.

Jewel went into the anti-void first. Error was her best bet, she shouldn’t be running around like this. Her soul still wasn’t fully healed and that hurt worse than she wanted to admit. But at least it didn’t crack back open… She panted a little and looked around… he wasn’t there?

“Weird… Error?” she called, just in case he was checking for her. “Great, he’s going to kill me for this,” she muttered. “I suppose it shouldn’t surprise me he’d go looking when I didn’t come back, but… where would he be?” she thought aloud.

Well, she had one other hub to check, then she’d just go to Blueberry. After all, they all met up in the Doodlesphere to take care of her before… She went there to look for Error… maybe they had the same plan? Jewel had to take a couple of minutes to steady herself before she tried to teleport again. She steeled herself and made it into the Doodlesphere, a bit breathless, but she made it. No one was around… but this place was a lot bigger than the anti-void.

“How many worlds have we checked?” she heard Classic Sans ask, his voice tired, more than normal.

“Too damn many,” Red muttered.

“Can’t we go check another one?” Blueberry asked.

“It won’t do us any good to looking through random AUs,” Dream spoke up.

“We’d just waste magic,” Ink agreed.

Blueberry was a mess. So were the rest of them, really. They hadn’t even gotten to see her healed, okay… only Blueberry and Error did, and to have her disappear for four more days due to Nightmare… None of them were sleeping well. Even Dream was worried because he knew what his brother was capable of… The only good thing would be that he wouldn’t kill her. He couldn’t feed off of her if she was dead… but that didn’t help matters any.

Slowly, Jewel walked over. She didn’t know what to say. Seeing them so worried over her…

Blueberry heard it first. The soft crunching of grass. He turned and saw her just… walking toward them. He was frozen in place, blue eyes unmoving as he stared at her. Then it was Sans, noticing Blueberry was spacing out. In a second, he abandoned the portals.

“Jewel!” he didn’t even run over, he teleported, hands on her arms, looking up at her as tears lined his eye sockets. “Thank the stars! Are you alright?? What happened?”

He wasn’t alone. The second he called out her name, the others were with him. Ink, Dream, Red, they all teleported over. Blueberry was still frozen in place, and one was still missing.

“I’m… I’m okay,” she said softly as she looked over at the four in front of her. “What about you guys, you look exhausted,” she said, gently wiping the tear from Sans’ eye.

“We can sleep when we know what happened to ya!” Red barked. He was trying to not show how relieved he was, his hand was shaking in his pocket.

Jewel looked down at them, realizing what she had feared came to pass. She really scared them… Tears started to line her eyes before she leaned down, grabbing Red and Sans before pulling them tight in a hug.

“I’m sorry. I tried to get back as soon as I could.”

It didn’t take either of them a second more to react. Sans and Red both wrapped their arm around her tightly. Ink went over and put a hand on her back and Jewel leaned in, resting her forehead on Ink’s. It was all she could do for the moment, before the other two pulled back and she gave Ink a proper hug.

“Heh, sorry Ink,” she said after a minute. “Nightmare kind of killed the outfit you made for me.”

Ink couldn’t help but laugh a little, a small snort escaping. “Really, that’s what you’re worried about? I can make you another one, no sweat.”

Jewel smiled but slowly pulled back, looking to Dream. “Got pulled in again to try and save my butt?”

“You were attacked by my brother. It’s kind of my business now,” Dream tried to reassure.

“Heh… we’re gonna have to have a talk eventually,” she smiled at him. But she noticed. “Where’s Error?”

“He couldn’t sit still, he went to some AUs to look for you,” Ink explained. “He’ll be back soon, probably.”

She nodded a little, but then saw Blueberry was still standing there, frozen. “Blue?” she called out.

He didn’t move. Everyone turned to look and see the tiny skeleton still just rooted to his spot. It was so strange, he was the one who got them all together, he was the one who worried the most when she was gone. Now he wasn’t moving?

“Blue?” Jewel asked softly as she got closer. His eyes were black now, which was really odd for the little skeleton.

He still didn’t move, even as Jewel stood in front of him. She gently caressed his cheek and he slowly looked up at her, his eyes still blacked out.

“Blue, what’s-?”

She didn’t even get the question out before he suddenly wrapped his arms around her waist, gripping her with all his strength. He openly sobbed into her shirt. She was surprised with the sudden action but that didn’t stop her from grabbing hold of the tiny skeleton, holding him close to her.

“Blue?”

“I… I thought…” he sobbed into her before looking up at her with his big blue eyes filled with tears. “I thought that you…” he gripped her tighter.

Slowly, Jewel was realizing what he meant. She slowly got down to her knees, getting low enough for Blueberry to not strain his neck looking at her. She pulled him close, hugging him properly now. “Blue, that’s now how that works,” she said with a small smile. He was too damn pure for this world. “I promise, it’s okay.”

“Don’t do anything like that again!” he then scolded through his sobs, pulling back to look at her, but his fists held her new jacket tightly.

“There’s no promises there, Blue,” she said with a soft sigh, reaching up and gently wiped his tears. “I don’t like using that magic if I can help it, but I’ll be damned if I’m going to let anything happen to my friends.”

“Heh, you’re starting to sound like us now,” Ink grinned a little as everyone walked over.

“But what do you mean that magic? Did you finally have to whip out the offensive?” Sans asked.

“Yeah, I did,” she sighed and stood up. “It’s not a pretty sight, I’ll be the first to admit it.” She looked back down at Blueberry. “You know I didn’t mean to scare you, right? I was doing what I had to.”

“I… I know,” Blueberry sighed as he leaned into her side, still holding onto her, not ready to let her go. “You just… looked like them, it…”

“What, looked like them?” Red questioned.

“There’s a lot to go over,” Jewel sighed a bit. “And as much as I hate story time…”

“Does that mean you’re going to tell us everything?” Sans asked.

“Oh, heck no,” Jewel chuckled, before rubbing the back of her head. “But I do owe you guys some explanation. I’ll try and be as open as I can but there’s… just a lot, Sans.”

“Define a lot,” he countered.

“A few hundred years worth of drama.”

Ink, Dream, Sans and Red all just stared in disbelief, their expressions differing just a bit based on their personalities. Ink was utterly stunned, Dream was surprised, but knew the feeling so it quickly subsided. Sans gave a blank stare, as did Red, but Red’s mouth hung open.

“Yeah… Again, I have a lot to explain.”

“So… maybe we should get started?” Sans tried.

“I think we should wait for everyone to be here. I hate talking about it, I rather only do it once. Then everyone’s on the same page. But…” She glanced over at Dream. “We still need to talk before any of this.”

“Why?” Ink asked. “He’s saved you and he’s a friend.”

“I don’t doubt he’d be my friend. But we haven’t really talked. And, before I let him know personal details…”

“I understand,” Dream smiled softly. “I know, I’m not as close as the others.”

“You got close to Blueberry pretty quickly,” Sans pointed out. “Wasn’t that day the first time you hung out with him?”

“Dude, you latched on after meeting me once. You have no right to judge.”

“Fair,” Sans sweated.

“I think we all kind of latched onto Jewel pretty quick,” Ink chuckled. “Even Error, in his way.”

“It happens when there’s something relatable at the core. And, really… you guys are all different versions of the same dude, the core doesn’t change too much.”

“Fair,” Red chuckled a little.

“So, do you want to start while we wait for Error to return?” Dream offered.

“Well, they all got one-on-one time,” she glanced back at the others. “If you want to sit down and talk, I don’t mind.”

“You’re not going to leave, right?” Blueberry asked.

“Nah. Even if I wanted to, I don’t think I could.”

“Why?” Red asked quickly. “Ya alright, sweetheart?”

“Not fully recovered. My soul’s still pretty badly hurt from Dust’s attack. I only really waited the bare minimum to be able to teleport back. I went back to the anti-void looking for Error, I thought he’d be my best bet to help me get through to find the rest of you. So I pushed myself a little bit coming here after that.”

“How bad? We can take a look,” Sans offered quickly. “That’s the one thing we can help with.”

“Provided you can see my soul,” Jewel reminded.

“Well, it’s still there, I doubt it’s moved.”

“Let’s just… wait on that,” Jewel said softly. If it happened the way she thought, she wanted Error there. “If you find it, it’ll probably bring up more questions anyway,” she muttered a little.

“Like why it’s inaccessible?” Sans rose a brow.

“Heh, something like that.”

“Jewel… can’t you just let us help?”

“Well… how about Dream tries while we talk? Alone.”

The group looked at each other and nodded. So long as she got help. It was a step in the right direction, normally she wouldn’t have allowed it.

“Let me know when Error gets back,” Jewel said before she and Dream started walking off to a private corner.

Blueberry continued to stand beside Sans, Ink and Red, looking a little dejected.

“Hey, Blue, what’s eating you?” Ink asked.

“I just…”

“Her offensive magic really shook you,” Sans surmised.

Blueberry nodded a little. “It… I don’t even know how to describe it… It was like… she was a different person.”


	25. Silver and Gold

# Chapter 25 – Silver and Gold

Dream followed Jewel to a more secluded part of the Doodlesphere, underneath a tree. He rose a bit of a brow at the option, his mind flashing back to more peaceful times with his brother a moment… but then again, those weren’t as peaceful as he thought. He couldn’t stop everything… he didn’t even realize what had been going on most of the time, his brother never talked about it… not in great detail.

“Dream?”

He snapped from his thoughts as he looked down at this human, a purple shirt under a black blazer… the similarities weren’t lost on him.

“Sorry, my mind started wandering there a little,” he weakly chuckled.

“Heh, it’s fine. Mine does that too,” she chuckled, and he couldn’t help but smile a little. He sat down with her under the tree, but not directly next to her.

“So, what was it you wanted to talk about?” he asked.

“Well, just kind of not fair everyone else got a chance to get to know me one-on-one, and you get pulled in and everyone just kind of lumps you in with the group. I mean, hell, Blueberry got his chance right before all this went down and you got pulled in again.” She chuckled a little and smiled a bit at him. “Thanks, for everything you’ve done. If it wasn’t for you and Blue, I’d still be in a coma probably.”

“It was really no trouble,” Dream smiled. “I like helping people. And really, your magic did all the work. It was just like…”

“You were the power source.”

“Uh, yeah…” Dream tilted his head. “So… how much do you know about me and my brother? Because that kind of determines how direct my questions can be.”

“Heh, Error’s told me quite a bit about how Nightmare feeds, and I assume it’s the same for you. You guys are twins, right? Just literally the opposite sides of a coin.”

“Yeah, I suppose we are, in a sense. We weren’t really… born. Just…”

“Put into existence as you are.” When Dream blinked, she chuckled. “It’s generally how it goes for a lot of primal beings.”

“Primal…?”

“Yeah. I mean… each of you has a role to play. You and Nightmare guide and guard your respective set of emotions, the other wouldn’t know what they were without you. It’s the same with Ink and Error. Ink’s not a creator, but he has their power, helps inspire and build. Error has the destructive tendencies. Without the other, the world would be either too empty or too crowded. They both are just a little… overzealous sometimes with their methods.”

Dream listened before he couldn’t help but chuckle. “Wow, Ink was right, you do sound like a guardian.”

“Ugh,” she groaned. “Really, please… He needs to stop saying that,” she muttered.

“But it’s true, isn’t it? Ink told me how you reset UnderSwap to save it from Error.”

“God, he really needs to stop spreading that around,” she muttered. “With my luck, he’d say it as a threat to stop Nightmare and bam, Nightmare knows something else about me I don’t want him to.”

Dream’s smile faded for a moment as he realized the implications. Nightmare would want that kind of power for himself… after he sucked a world dry he could use it to reset the world and start again… He wouldn’t be holding back as much because he could just reset everything.

“That wouldn’t be ideal,” Dream agreed. “I’ll talk to him, maybe he’ll listen to me.”

“Please, he’s got a few bad habits he needs to break regarding me.”

“Like what?”

“Well, for starters, he’s adamant that I’m a creator, which I’m not. I’m no different from him and Error… the only thing is… well, I’m human instead of a Sans… It’s weird, I know but if ya think about it, only humans can really reset, determination and all… not that I think I have enough determination to override Frisk or Chara, or whoever else has that power in the multiverse.”

“They do have a lot for such small children,” Dream sweated as he chuckled nervously. “But…” he paused before looking to her. “What… did you mean about Nightmare knowing?”

“Can’t… you feel it?”

“Feel… what? I can feel your positivity, and it’s pretty strong,” he grinned at her.

Jewel hesitated a moment, before taking a breath. “Okay, so…” she extended her hand to him, though kind of looking away. “I really shouldn’t do this… I barely know you. But I… well… I need to know. But I… don’t want to hurt you either, okay? So the second you feel anything wrong, just say something and I’ll stop.”

Dream stared at her for a moment, trying to figure out what she was saying. “What… do you mean?”

She sighed a little, pulling her hand back. She shouldn’t be surprised he was hesitating. “Blueberry told me how you reacted when you used your magic on me. And Error told me he explained to you that my powers are amplified when that happens. I’ve also noticed you’re not… actively feeding off of me like Nightmare was before, or trying to during this last encounter.”

“I don’t like doing that,” Dream explained, defending himself quickly. “I only do it if I have to. I don’t like taking people’s happiness away.”

“Ironic, isn’t it?” she lulled, “That for Nightmare to increase his power, he’s actually helping people, taking their negativity away and calming them down, whereas you would have to take their happiness, love, all of that, and bring them back down to earth.”

Dream sighed. “Yeah… I’ve thought about it a lot more than I like to admit… I don’t even think my brother realizes what he’s doing. But he purposely spreads misery to feed off of it.”

“While I hear you spread happiness to just help people. You two balance out.”

“It goes right back to that for you, doesn’t it? Balance,” Dream realized. His eyes searched over her for a moment. “You want to see if I can sense what Nightmare does, don’t you?”

“Well… Blue said your positivity arrows were the only thing that could harm Nightmare… so I have to assume Negativity harms you too. So while you both aren’t able to really _feel_ it, per se, like you do your own, you both are affected by the opposite and can tell when it’s there… yet it seems like… if you and Nightmare were both in the same room, you’d hurt each other more than I’d hurt either of you… and you’d both be able to feed off of me at the same time.”

“That… shouldn’t be possible,” Dream thought about it. “While its true emotions are complex things… it’s very rare for someone to have such two drastic emotions at once to both of us to feed off of. Normally when someone’s emotions are that mixed we can’t, we’d have to wait for the person to go to one side or the other.”

Jewel sighed a little, scratching the side of her face a little. “So… I’ll be explaining that to the whole group… as to the why…” she admitted. “I… really, really don’t want to, but… I think I… need to explain more than I have to everyone.”

Dream supposed he could wait a little while to get those answers. She seemed to not want to talk about it so he wouldn’t force her to repeat herself. But something else she said did trigger another memory. “But… Blueberry said your barrier stunned my brother,” he remembered. “Can you tell me how you did that? I haven’t been able to paralyze his magic before! Even with my positivity, it just weakens him to make him want to leave.”

“Oh, that… Uh… Well… I’d show you but… my soul…” she sweated.

“Oh, right. I’m supposed to be healing you! I’m sorry!” he apologized and moved to get a little closer. “Um… normally to heal a soul I’d need to access it…”

Jewel sweated a little. “Yeah, uh… can we… try what you did before? It won’t be as potent since I’m not in my state, but… my magic was spilling out before. If you supply the positivity to fuel, I might be able to do it on my own…”

“Might?”

“I’ve… never had soul damage before, honestly.”

“How have you gone this long without your soul being damaged? You use magic.”

“And before I met Error, I’ve only really fought other humans who can’t. So I’ve been physically damaged. I’m human, remember? Physical damage doesn’t transfer to the soul. It’s one of the reasons ours can survive death, even if humans can’t see them.”

“I see… I forgot about that.”

“Well, you’re not really into collecting them like the others. I know Ink’s at least seen them, I’m not sure about Blue… I doubt Stretch would let him.”

“That sounds about right,” Dream smiled a little before taking a breath. “Okay, I’m willing to try, but if it doesn’t… I don’t know what I can do with your soul inaccessible.”

Jewel looked uneasy. “Don’t… worry about that right now. Let’s just… focus on trying, eh?”

“Okay, um…” Dream looked a little uncomfortable. “So I… have to get as close to your soul as possible…”

“Dude, you touched my chest before right?”

Dream blushed in gold. “N-not--!”

Jewel laughed a little. “Oh god, Dream. It’s okay!” She grinned at him before offering her hand. “C’mere you, it’s not that bad. You don’t have to get that close to my core to power me up. Trust me, Blue was doing it just fine through conversation before. You’re just more potent.”

Dream’s blush faded and his expression turned to one of confusion. “Wait, Blue was… what?”

“C’mon, we can talk and heal.”

Dream was completely lost but he took her hand. If he didn’t have to be close… he activated his aura with his healing magic. Once again, he felt it swirl around them both, but at least it wasn’t as intense. Still, it was overwhelming, feeling that much positivity. He actively flinched, feeling like he was going to make a mistake.

“Dream, hey,” he heard, before he felt a hand on his cheek.

He opened his eyes to find a pair of pale bluish-white ones staring back at him. He couldn’t help but stare into them, the feeling of purity around them was just… breathtaking. He moved closer, unable to help himself. He felt drawn…

“Hey, easy there, bucko,” Jewel chuckled. “Weren’t you the one just worried about personal space?”

“Oh!” he snapped out of it a little, avoiding her gaze so he could stay in control.

Jewel chuckled a little. “How old are you? You act like you haven’t seen a lot in your time.”

Dream blushed a little more. “I… well…” He sighed. “I mean… I’ve been around for over six-hundred years… but most of that I was trapped in stone, unaware of anything… I’ve… only really been awake for about a hundred years. I know more than most, but I’ll admit this magic is something I’m not used to… I’ve never met anyone like me before.”

Jewel tilted her head a little, before chuckling a bit. “Oh boy. Let me guess, Nightmare’s been running around unhindered for most of those years, huh?”

“Yeah… so he’s had a lot more time to learn. He’s patient and cunning… I try but I always feel like I’m a step behind him. I thought I had the advantage when I formed the Star Sanses with Blueberry and Ink… but then we had a falling out… more Ink and me than Blueberry, and then…”

“Nightmare got the idea to get his own group together,” Jewel realized.

“Yeah. It’s so hard to keep up…”

Jewel was silent for a while. “I… get that. I’m not quite the same, Dream, but I understand. I… well, I’ll spare details right now because everyone’s going to ask, but… I get it.”

Dream felt her hand on his skull, gently stroking it. It felt so foreign, yet… he liked it. He glanced up and their eyes locked again. Gold and silver… “Jewel… I… what is… this?” he asked, trying to stay in control, and not get pulled in.

Jewel chuckled a little. “My magic? I told you I’m not exactly like you. But given what you are, I can’t say I’m not surprised you're drawn in. Most people pure of heart are when this comes out… they just… want to bask in it. I’m sure you get the same, with your aura.”

He was barely able to focus, but she gave him something of a grounding point. Her aura… it was like his. People flocked to it because it made them happy… But… she wasn’t acting like them. “But you’re… not…”

“I’m an empath, Dream,” she smiled. “I’m kind of immune to people trying to manipulate my feelings with magic, good or bad. I mean, if I really want to, I can let myself, it’d probably speed this up, but I think that might overwhelm you. You’re already kind of… lost right now. I can’t turn my aura down, it’s reflecting yours.”

It was so strong because of him? She wasn’t even doing anything? Dream stared up at her and took a breath, toning down his magic, feeling hers follow suit. It was becoming more bearable.

“So… all this time… I keep getting overwhelmed by my own power?”

Jewel chuckled a little at him. “Didn’t realize how much you had, did you?”

Dream chuckled nervously, embarrassed. “I suppose not…”

Jewel smiled and gently put her other arm around him, while he still held her hand to try and heal her. “You know, if you ever want to talk, I’m a pretty good ear. I can’t guarantee I’ll be able to help any, but I’m willing to listen. Just because you’re the representation of positive feelings, I know you have to have a few negative ones of your own. After all, sometimes you need to be sad to renew happiness.”

Dream let out a soft gasp as she spoke, looking up at her. It was true, he could still get sad, angry… nothing lasted too long, but the only true negative emotion he couldn’t feel was hatred. That was beyond him, and he was glad for it. That left such a mark on his brother’s soul… but if he could feel those… could his brother feel everything… except…

Jewel noticed his face fall, his aura fading more with it. “Hey, what’s wrong?”

“Just… a horrible thought. The only emotion I can’t feel is hatred… my brother is my opposite… so does that mean he can’t… has he… all this time..?”

“So, you think the opposite of hatred is love?”

Dream looked up at her. “Well… isn’t it?”

Jewel chuckled. “No, it’s not. You can love to hate things. Love can be just as dark as it is light. I’m pretty sure your brother loves what he does on some level, just as you love to do what you do. And I doubt even a being of pure negativity is impossible of falling in love. Though, I’ll be honest it’ll probably be a very toxic relationship. But… you can’t hate, which means he probably won’t find joy in anything. That’s the true opposite. He’ll never be happy, no matter what he does. He might feel a temporary sense of pleasure or pride, something akin to it, just like you can distrust someone, you can dislike something to the point of avoiding it. But, honestly, I won’t know unless I grab his soul again and give it a good read.”

Dream then paled, staring at her wide-eyed. “You grabbed his soul??”

“Well, touched. I could’ve gone further but I didn’t really need to.”

Dream was just utterly taken aback. “H-How?? His magic! It-it would have…” Dream let her go, grabbing her arms. Her left was slightly off-colored from the rest of her. He pulled up the sleeve, revealing some still healing burns. But they were mild.

Jewel knew. She focused on healing the hand first, the rest didn’t matter, especially with her arms being covered. She felt his hand touch her arm and he focused on healing what was left on her arm.

“I… How did… I’m so…”

“There’s a lot to go into…” She said as she leaned in, pulling him closer as she hugged him against her.

“Why…” he then asked, looking up at her. “Why did you… go after his soul of all things? Were you trying to kill him? Blueberry said the plan you had was to teleport them away, not..!” Tears were in his eyes. Despite everything, that was still his brother!

“I needed to get his code.”

“His… what for?”

“To protect Blue. I did it to Dust too, if it makes you feel better. I wouldn’t have risked that kind of thing otherwise… but I think it also put a healthy amount of fear into them so I suppose that works out in our favor for the short term… just means he’s going to be more careful and calculating from here on out.”

“But… how does that protect Blue?”

“Because I banned them from his world.”

Dream blinked, staring up at her for a long moment. “You… what? You can do that??”

“Heh, I honestly never tried,” Jewel sweated. “I should probably go back to UnderSwap eventually and double-check the code… Might have Sans or Stretch work with me on it, I’m honestly not the greatest… but the whole point was so I could copy their identification code and basically put it in a block to prevent Nightmare from going back. He can’t send Dust either… not that I know how he travels… but he can’t go himself now.”

Dream stared at her. “Do you still have it? Can we do that for all the Aus?”

“No, I didn’t memorize it. Besides… he’s still a primal force. Negating him entirely will upset the balance.”

Dream stared at her for a moment. “But… he’ll…” He then realized what exactly she was saying. “You’re right,” he sighed a little but then he looked at her. “What else happened? Any other injuries? And is this helping your soul at all?”

“Yes, it is,” Jewel smiled softly at him. “Though I’ll admit, the burns were kind of low priority since they were covered. Dust stabbed me in the back, I focused on that and getting functionality back in my hand. I had a few other minor burns from Nightmare struggling against me but those were just first degree little things. Clothes held up pretty well, actually.”

“So… it’s just your soul now? You promise that’s it? You’re not hiding anything else?”

“Oh, I’m hiding a lot. But no, not hiding any injuries. My soul is all that’s left.”

Dream nodded then took his hand and put it on her sternum underneath her clavicle. “Then I’m going to do what I can.”

Jewel watched him focus, his eyes getting intense and she couldn’t help but feel amused. “Heh… you really wanna be near my soul?”

“It’s the most effective way.”

“And it doesn’t… hurt or anything?”

“Why would it hurt?” Dream rose a brow.

Jewel hesitated a moment. “Same reason Nightmare got stunned when he hit my barrier.”

“I can’t feel any negativity in you, Jewel, remember?”

Jewel was still silent about it for a while yet. That would be something that haunted her until she got a definite answer. “How’s your magic? Do you need to feed?”

“I really hate that term,” Dream sweated. “I don’t… eat it. I absorb it… and I mean… I know it’s how I get my energy but it sounds so…”

“Yeah, kind of vampiric I suppose,” Jewel chuckled. “How about charge? Sound better?”

“Yeah,” he smiled. “And, I’m all right for now. This is more intense than I thought it would be.”

“Well… you know you can take mine, right?”

“But you need yours. And didn’t you get in serious trouble when Nightmare charged off of you?”

“Nightmare fed off me, plain and simple. He’s a glutton, and just… took everything, which reflected that much and more back at me. With you… well, so long as you take it steady, I don’t have to worry about the same kind of thing happening. There’s a lot of differences, but the main one is that if you only take a little, then I’ll just reflect back what you have. Nightmare was trying to take it all, doubling, tripling in seconds.”

Dream thought about it, but he slowly started to charge himself with her aura. It was all around and he was going to need the power to fix her soul. Even just that little bit, he felt her aura get that much stronger. His eyes grew wide. “Wow… I can see why my brother would have an interest in you… This… I have to really focus to not take more as your power increases…”

“Yeah… easy to fall into that trap,” she muttered a little.

Dream looked back up at her. Her eyes were still that brilliant silver color, the bluish-white. “So… can I ask?”

“Ask what?”

“What… this all is, exactly? This aura you have… why I’m the only one taking anything if you’re like me… you don’t take what I put toward you.”

“Well, I mean, I do. Just not in the same way you do,” she explained.

“Can you explain it, please? You said Blueberry helped you too. I know he’s a great source of positivity, but… conversation was enough for you?”

Jewel chuckled a little. “I suppose this one I can explain twice. See… while you and your brother have to take the emotions from people… that’s not how my powers work. I’m not a guardian of any kind. My powers are… well… complicated,” she sweated. “But, the short of it is, your emotions won’t charge me. My own emotions are the source of my power.”

“You’re… own? So how is this..?”

“A good empath can prevent others from manipulating their feelings through the power alone. It’s something that’s hard to master. I’ll explain in more detail with the others, they won’t know anything about this either. But basically, I’m not affected by other’s emotions like a new empath would be. They can easily be overwhelmed by someone else’s emotions, feeling them as their own. I’ve gotten past that part, but I can still allow myself to feel what others do. With you, all I have to do is… well, open myself to you. Your emotions, I can allow myself to feel them as my own. So all this positivity you have, it will feel like it’s my own, even if it’s not. It’s not like you can change my mood or manipulate me with it,” she teased him a little, “But, for the sake of recharging or healing, it’s like your aura would affect other people. Like, right now… I feel… well, calm. I’m a bit happy but… that’s because I’m back with my friends, and trying to make a new one. I’m sorry if this makes no sense…”

Dream started to think about what she had said. “So… my aura on its own… won’t make you happy like it does others… but to quickly charge up… you allow it to flow into your soul to sort of pretend it works?” he rose a brow.

“Something like that,” she chuckled a little. “It’s… like this, Dream. Your aura is strong and it’s great if you’re trying to pull people out of a bad spot. But for me, it just… won’t work. I know how that kind of magic works, and I made myself resistant to it a long time ago, because once upon a time, I was affected and I hated it. I… sort of regret closing myself off like that, but it is what it is. But my soul still responds the same…”

“You… closed yourself off?” Dream questioned.

Jewel sighed a little. “Part of storytime, okay?” she said with a small smile.

“Okay…” Dream relented. There was so much he wanted to ask, but apparently, everyone was going to get that information… “But… Blueberry… just talking with you made you… happy?” he questioned.

“Yeah,” she chuckled. “I’m not… immune, ya know. I’m still human. Blueberry is contagious,” she smiled. “When he smiles, you just want to smile with him. He’s so pure and it’s just…” Her smile slowly fell and she sighed. “And I broke him…”

“You didn’t break him. He’s just been worried about you!”

“No, I…” she sighed a little. “I scared him. He saw what I did to Nightmare, to Dust. He saw… probably felt… he’s more in tune with emotions than people give him credit for. He might even be an empath… which is strange, I don’t think Classic Papyrus is… Might be one of those variables in how he developed. Given that he’s a Sans with the lack of… well, everything, stats-wise.”

Dream never thought about that. Blueberry was always very in-tune with what he needed. “How would you even know?”

  
“Just by watching how he reacts. There’s a few tests, but nothing concrete. After everything, we can talk about it. I think he needs a little extra care too now… maybe he’ll feel better after I explain everything…”

“I think we all will,” Dream admitted.

“Heh, or freak out more,” Jewel sweated.

“You seem to think we’ll treat you differently once we know how your magic works.”

“It’s not just… how it works, it’s… well, everything that goes with it. There’s a lot buried and sometimes it’s better left there.”

“And you think we want you to drag it back up?”

“Everyone else does. Blue’s been the gentlest about it, just asking about my brother, which is a fair enough question but… Ink and Sans… they keep pulling for me to explain why I think a certain way, wanting to know why I don’t want… instead of just accepting it. Even Error’s wanting to know and… well… everything’s connected, even if I want to pretend it’s not… Heh… Error wants to talk about anomalies… I shouldn’t even be alive…”

“Jewel…” Dream started to get worried. He had heard about her… instability from Ink…

“No, it’s not,” she chuckled softly. “No, I literally shouldn’t be alive. The chances of my whole scenario happening are so minuscule, it’s… well… Oh god, I’m going to have to go over that, aren’t I?” she paled a little, putting a hand over her mouth. “Blue’s not going to be able… damn…” she muttered a bit.

“What about Blue?”

She then looked over at him, those blue-white eyes staring into his golden ones. He always felt like he was going to get lost in those and he didn’t understand why…

“What about you?” she then asked. “It’s… some dark shit, Dream. Are you going to be okay listening?”

Dream chuckled softly. “Your concern is welcome and honestly, refreshing. I have been… through more trauma than I appear to have, given my positive nature. Hearing about someone’s suffering is never easy, especially when I cannot do anything about it. But I can handle a lot more than most give me credit for. Though I do share your concern for Blueberry…”

“Yeah… but he won’t agree to sit out, we both know it… I suppose a disclaimer at the beginning will have to do.”

Dream nodded in agreement before he turned to look down at his hand still on the upper part of her chest. “So… how is it? How much more do you think?”

Jewel looked down at his hand, gently putting her own over his. “It’s getting there. Still cracked but it’s healing nicely. Just a bit of a slow process, huh?” she chuckled.

“I suppose it would be,” he smiled. “But… I do enjoy this… talking with you, and this… feeling… I don’t know what this aura is but I… I just feel drawn to you. Is this why the others bond with you so quickly?”

“I hope not,” Jewel sweated. “But I suppose it would. I don’t use my magic around them much. I try not to use it at all.”

“Why?” Dream questioned. “It’s part of who you are. We all use magic in some form.”

“Yeah, I suppose… it’s just… different for me.”

“More of what you’re going to explain, I assume,” Dream sighed.

“Yeah…” she sweated. “Sorry.”

“It’s quite all right, I understand. However… I don’t know what you intended to do. This talk hasn’t been… much of one. Most of the deeper questions I have you’re holding back on so you don’t have to explain it twice.”

“I know, and I’m sorry,” she said softly. “I really… really hate talking about this…” she muttered.

Dream couldn’t help but chuckle. “It’s quite all right. I just…” he looked a little guilty, “I just don’t feel like… I should be a part of this. We’re not… close, not like the others. I do like you, Jewel. You’re friendly and nice… I just don’t feel like I… deserve to know something so personal as you were to share with your friends, especially when it bothers you to do so.”

“I know this is kind of a rushed meeting. Nothing really… to connect, but…” she reached over and gently patted his skull. He looked up at her again, for once, seeing past her eyes as she smiled warmly at him. “I like you, Dream. You’re sweet and you care about everyone. It’s hard to see you as anything but a friend. Besides,” her hand moved from his skull to over his chest. “It’s nice to meet someone who gets it, ya know? Maybe not exactly but it’s…”

Dream could feel his soul humming as her hand moved over it in his chest. At her wounds, he felt the positivity surge from her and into him. His soul swelled. For a moment, he felt like he was a child again. With his brother, under that tree. The happy memories he shared with him, the time they spent loving each other before he started to succumb… To have someone like that again… someone who understood what he was, his role… Blueberry and Ink, they were good friends but they just… the type of magic he had, it was rare. And it seemed this person before him had the same magic, if not a similar one.

“Jewel… I would be honored to be your friend,” he said, tears starting to line his eyes. He didn’t know why. He was just… so happy… and it wasn’t like her aura did what his did… even if it was… he wouldn’t be affected by it, would he?

“Hey now, no need for tears,” Jewel smiled at him as she gently wiped the tears away from his eyes. “I’m definitely not worth crying over.”

“That’s not true.”

Dream and Jewel blinked and turned, seeing Blueberry standing there, tears lining his bright blue eyes.

“Blue? How long have you been there?” Jewel asked softly.

“I just… I was worried about how long it was taking… E-Error’s not back yet but I…”

“Oh, Blue…”

When she stretched out her hand toward him, that was all it took for Blueberry to rush over to her. His gloved hand took hers, and he felt surprised when she pulled him down and into her lap. Dream was still healing her and he put his hand on her chest with him, trying to will whatever he had to her.

“Blue, it’s okay.”

“This wouldn’t have--!” His head was quickly flicked, stopping him from continuing.

“No. This is no one’s fault except Nightmare’s. He attacked, his choice, stuff happens. I should have thought things through more, I forgot a crucial detail, but I’ve also never had damage like this done to me before. It didn’t register fully until afterward. Still, despite my lack of preparedness, this is no one’s fault except Nightmare’s, okay?”

He felt her arms wrap around him, feeling something… strange. Between Dream’s aura and hers… well, obviously he couldn’t help but feel better, happy, but…

“What’s… this?” Blue asked, his eyes filled to the brim in the shape of stars as Jewel’s aura seemed to become more visible, a white glow around her, much like Dream’s golden one, except white magical particles were flying upward.

“Part of my magic, Blue,” Jewel smiled. “It’s… well, it’s like Dream’s, I suppose,” she told them both. “His aura makes people feel happy, while mine… well… grants special protection to people.”

“Like what?” Blueberry asked, his eyes practically sparkling.

Jewel chuckled a little. “Well, how about we allow the others to learn with you, hm? In the meantime,” she turned to Dream, “You don’t mind the extra company, do you?”

Dream chuckled. “Not at all. I think we were about done anyway. Now, how about we focus on finishing up your healing.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Fair warning, guys, the next four chapters are going to contain some very mature themes and trigger warnings will be placed at the beginning. Nothing graphic will be shown but it will be insinuated. Just warning everyone. You're about to get some of Jewel's backstory. Just the dark, important bits that helped build her to who she is.


	26. Storytime: Magic

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **Author’s Note: Chapters 26-29 are explanations of Jewel’s past and powers. Chapter 27-29 contain some sensitive material for certain viewers. There are no graphic scenes, but they are alluded to. Trigger warnings include child abuse, child rape, murder and suicide. These chapters are not necessary but they do go into detail about certain events and how they shaped her life. It is still a T-rated fic, just a warning to those who prefer to avoid such topics. Thank you.**

# Chapter 26 – Storytime: Magic

Error was losing his mind. It had been four days. He hadn’t been able to find her… He checked everywhere Nightmare might have hidden her, nearly getting caught and found out. He had searched high and low in the castle, he searched any AU they had ever used as a base for a mission, whatever it took! But he couldn’t find her.

He came back to the Doodlesphere at a loss. What else could he do? No! He couldn’t give up! But when he walked through, he saw Ink, Sans and Red all sitting, chatting… and he felt his marrow boil.

“The fuck do you think you’re doing??”

“Oh, hey Error!” Ink grinned.

“How can you just sit around?! Jewel’s still missing! She’s-!”

“She’s back there,” Sans casually pointed to where she had gone with Dream a few hours prior.

“What..?” Error stood in disbelief.

“She came back ‘bout four hours ago,” Red shrugged. “We’ve been waitin’—”

Error didn’t even wait for Red to finish, he just started running.

“Guess that’s our cue,” Sans chuckled as he stood up.

Error ran as fast as his legs could carry him until he came upon her. He saw Blueberry in her lap, being held and it almost infuriated him but right now his relief that she as back kept him from being a homicidal dictator. That, and the strange aura around her… He didn’t know why but he felt hesitant to get close to her… but his feet moved on their own.

Jewel heard the soft footfalls before the other two and she turned, her smile beaming as she saw him. “Error!”

Her eyes… they were… it was like when she protected him. Why were they that off-white? He started to panic a little. Had something happened? This wasn’t her! “J-Jewel?” he trembled.

“Error?” she questioned, then she remembered what she was emitting. “Oh, I’m sorry… it’s okay, Error, really.”

“What… is that?” Sans questioned, coming up behind Error, noticing him beginning to tremble. “Dude, you okay?”

“Sh-shit…” Red muttered, starting to feel himself shake a little. “Th-the fuck?”

“What’s going on?” Ink blinked, looking at them.

“Dream, we better stop,” she said and Dream pulled his hand back, his aura fading, and in turn, so did Jewel’s. It was confusing, and Blueberry stared at the two trembling skeletons.

“What’s wrong with them?” Blueberry asked as he got up with Jewel.

“It’s my aura. Well, that aura,” Jewel said as she walked over. Her eyes were back to normal, the steel-blue they were.

She put a hand on Red’s shoulder, getting him to look up. “Take a deep breath,” she told them. Red was easily able to do so, taking a breath and able to calm down.

Error, however, was trembling like someone was actively trying to touch him. The neckless under his shirt, as he still only had his red t-shirt on with the partially torn sleeve and tiny drip of black ink, started to glow. Jewel moved closer to him, blocking everything else from his line of sight for a moment.

“Error… come on, Error, listen to me.” She didn’t dare touch him while he was in this state, he might react violently without realizing. Sure, they had gotten closer, but he still had issues with contact. Especially if he wasn’t aware. “Everything’s fine, just take a deep breath.”

A shaky breath escaped past his teeth and he slowly started to blink again. He looked up at her, seeing her eyes normal once again and he started to feel better. Still… he laced her fingers with his strings and tethered her hand to his own again, pulling those strings taught, as if trying to grab her without actually touching her.

“The hell is going on?” Sans questioned. Then he looked between the two. His mind wracked for answers. Only Red and Error were affected? Blueberry and Dream seemed just fine inside of her aura and he and Ink weren’t affected by simply being outside of it like they were.

“That’s… well…” Jewel sighed a little, tightening the strings with Error to give him a little stability. “That was… my… purity aura.”

“Purity aura?” Ink parroted, questioning. “You’ve never broken it out before, why now?”

“Well, it wasn’t really my choice.” She glanced back as Dream and Blueberry started getting closer. “Dream and I just kind of… well, reflect off of one another. It just kind of… happened when he was healing me.”

“So, Dream’s aura makes people feel happy, what does yours do?” Ink asked, one of his eyes a question mark. “And why did these two freak out?”

“Because of karma,” Jewel pointed out. “The purity aura is just that. Pure good karma. It’s part of my defensive magic. It protects those with pure souls, like Blueberry and Dream, while others who have LV…”

“So it’s kind of like a repellent?” Sans questioned.

“Well, not quite. But it can make those with higher LV extremely uncomfortable. It kind of… well, it’s like that silent judge, ya know? Even though there is none, you feel subconscious about everything.”

“So, what, ya tried ta make me feel guilty for da choices I’ve had to make?” Red questioned, sort of glaring at her.

“That’s not the point of it, but it… well, it is a side effect, and trust me, I’m not immune either.”

“What do you mean, it’s your aura,” Dream pointed out.

“Actually… that’s not… entirely accurate…” Jewel sweated.

“What… are you talking about?” Sans carefully questioned.

Jewel sighed a little before glancing down at Error, who had been silent. He was just staring up at her.

“I’ll explain as best I can. Can you just… give us a minute?” she asked.

“Of course,” Dream answered for everyone, starting to shuffle everyone toward the portals.

Once they were alone, Jewel looked back down at Error. “Hey, it’s okay.”

Error stared at her for a moment before with a shaky hand touched her cheek. He started glitching heavily but he wouldn’t stop. “You’re hurt?” he asked first.

“Not much anymore, Dream took care of it. I’ve… never taken soul damage before so it was new to me,” she admitted a little sheepishly.

“The karma from Dust shouldn’t have… not with you. From what you’ve told me… I don’t understand.”

“I know. It’s… something everyone’s about to learn, unfortunately,” she sighed.

Error looked at her a little concerned. “You don’t want to tell us, do you?”

“Not really, no.” She turned back to him. “Would you want to tell people how you work? About your poor eyesight and the real reason you need your strings in battle?”

“Heh, fair point,” he muttered. “But this isn’t a… weakness, right?”

“No, it’s… how it works. And how weird it is… and what’s wrong with me…”

“Jewel, there’s not--!”

“Please, Error, we both know I’m hardly normal,” she tried to chuckle. But she sighed, leaning into his touch a bit. “But, I, uh… have a favor to ask.”

“What?” he asked, slowly pulling his hand back as he looked at her, seriously. He didn’t like the tone in her voice.

“Blueberry mentioned… how you’d pull up timelines to show him things from your past…”

Error tensed a little. “You want me… to just… show them? So you don’t have to talk about it?”

“I… would probably be better than listening to me drone on and avoiding things and jumping around, making no sense… could follow the timeline of events that brought us to this point.”

“You realize that there’s no… filter with that, right? They’d see it as everything happened. Not even how you’d remember it, how it really went down. Watching my own, I’ve realized how much I had forgotten.”

“Better for them to judge me, I suppose.”

Error looked at her before looking down at the ground. “It’d… take time for me to dig these up, I wasn’t involved. Your world doesn’t even exist anymore, I don’t have a point to which I could…” How was he going to find these timelines?

“Couldn’t you load them up from my soul?”

Error’s gaze shot up and looked at her with wide eyes. “You… want me to..? I thought your soul was inaccessible? It’s why I was never able to yank it out! Why we can’t read your stats!”

“That’s not… entirely accurate…” she admitted softly to him.

Error stared at her, searching her eyes. She lied to him? Granted, back then, he would have lied to himself too… “Damn it, Jewel…” he muttered.

“If you don’t want to, it’s fine.”

“No, it’s not that I just…” He held his head a little. “I know I’m hardly one to talk about this. I mean, I manipulate people through their souls all the time! This isn’t something I haven’t done before. But that’s… the point. Do you know what this is to a monster? What I do to them? And now you want me to do it to you too? To put your whole life on display for them?”

“Don’t pretend you don’t want to know too,” she said with a smile at him.

Error tensed and his fist tightened at his side. He did want to know. He wanted to know everything about her. “You know… I don’t give freely, Jewel. You shouldn’t either. None of this is anyone’s business. If you don’t want to talk about you don’t have to. I don’t care what they say, I’ll shut them up for you!”

“Trying to talk me out of it? Believe me, I want to back out, and any excuse to right now I’d probably gratefully accept… but I can’t keep running, Error.” She sighed a little. “Even if I lose my friends because of it…”

Error’s eyes widened. She expected to lose them over this? He didn’t even think, he just grabbed her hand, his glitching intensifying, but whether it was his fear, or the determination in his words, he wasn’t sure. “You’ll never lose me!” he declared, staring up at her. “Whatever it is you’ve done, it can’t be worse than what I have! And even if somehow…” he stared up into her eyes. “It doesn’t matter. You’re my best friend, Jewel, I’ll never leave you!”

The smile that appeared made him hopeful. He hoped she believed him. He hoped he could stay true to his words. He didn’t know what was in her past, and it obviously scared her. Maybe, like him, she just… never told anyone before. Blueberry was the first he had opened up to, and that was a mistake. He hoped that was the case…

Error was snapped from his thoughts as he felt his hand being guided. His left still held hers, but his right was connected to her by his strings. He felt his hand rest itself on his cheek, guided by her own. He watched her as she moved to her own hand… and gently placed a soft kiss on her palm before closing her hand a little. His eyes widened as he felt his fingers follow her movements, closing a bit around his cheek. Did… did she just..? A blue dusting appeared across his face as his glitching intensified a little.

“You’re a prince, Error.”

That line again. He felt his soul thrum in his ribcage. What was this? He stared up at her, unable to speak, unable to move. He just stood there, staring up at her. He wanted to protest. He was far from a prince… he was some stupid vagabond who made everyone’s life a living hell. He destroyed worlds, destroyed people… he helped spread misery… the exact opposite of her. Was it any wonder when her aura came out he was so affected by it? This… this couldn’t…

“Come on,” he heard, her voice snapping him out of his thoughts. “This is going to be a while. Might as well get it over with.”

Her hand slipped from his grasp, but they were still connected by his strings. He held her firm by them, making her turn back to him.

“Jewel… I…”

“It’s okay, Error. Let’s… just go.”

She had gotten used to his strings… even from the moment they met she could severe them without so much as blinking… but now she was able to be gentle with them. Instead of destroying them outright, slicing them, with how much he had tied her hands to be close to her she learned to untie his strings from her fingers without physically doing so. Her magic and his just… worked. But the fact she did it… was she trying to pull away from him? It felt like she was putting distance between them, despite what she was asking him to do. He ran after her and she felt her fingers being laced again. Jewel turned, glancing back at Error as he stared at her, eyes determined.

“If this is what you want to do, fine. But I’m not leaving you.”

“You want to hold my hand through this whole thing?” she half teased him, smiling back at him.

His gaze didn’t falter, looking directly at her, as serious as ever. “If that’s what it takes to make you believe me.”

Her teasing smile faded as she looked down at him, surprise lightly gracing her features. That had honestly not be something she had thought to hear come from him. “Error…” she whispered before her lips turned in a grateful smile and she tightened the strings between them. “All right. Let’s… start this train wreck,” she sighed with a smile.

Error walked back with her, the strings pulled taught between them as they held the slack in their closed hands, his way of trying to hold her hand without touching her. He didn’t care about the looks they may get. He was going to stand by with her.

The others turned back as they heard them walking up.

“Everything good?” Sans asked.

“Yeah. Just needed to ask a favor,” she responded.

“Okay, so… how’s this gonna start?” Red asked.

“Oh lord,” Jewel muttered. “There’s so much to go into… Uh, chronologically, I suppose I could start, but that’d leave you in the dark and learning with me… most of this shit I didn’t even come to partially understand until way after shit happened to make me the way I am… there’s a lot of looking back and going “oh, so that’s happened,” I’ll be honest, and unless you’ve got a photographic memory and memorize the tiniest details, that’s… gonna be hard to keep up with.”

“So, how about we start with the need-to-knows,” Sans suggested.

“Okay, well… guess we should start with the actual powers then, what they are, etc…” She hesitated a moment and looked to Dream. “You’ll say something the second something feels off, right?”

Dream couldn’t help but chuckle. “Yes, but I told you, I can’t sense anything.”

“It… might be different with the powers… active,” Jewel said hesitantly.

Dream stared at her for a moment. Demonstrations? Right, Nightmare was paralyzed by her magic, that could be problematic… “I’ll say something, don’t worry… and maybe stand back,” he sweated a little. “But… you’re going to be demonstrating?”

“It’s a lot easier to see than me trying to explain it,” Jewel admitted.

“Is your soul healed enough for that?” he asked, which made everyone turn to her, worried.

“Yeah, you did great,” she smiled at him.

A collective sigh of relief escaped the Sanses and they all kind of just chuckled a little at it.

“Okay, so…” She glanced to Error as he was the closest. “I know it feels weird, but, really, my purity aura doesn’t hurt you. It’s not capable of that.”

“You’re… going to do that again?” Error asked hesitantly.

“Well, it happens when I activate white magic in full. And when I’m with Dream, apparently,” she sweated. “His magic and mine kind of feed off one another too.”

“You’re jumping again,” Ink pointed out. “I thought I had a hard time keeping my thoughts together,” he chuckled with a small snort in his laugh.

Jewel laughed with him. “Yeah, I do that…” she sweated a little. “Okay, so… white magic first.” Jewel took a breath, closing her eyes.

“When I activate my defensive powers, I’m using white magic.” She opened her eyes to reveal they were that bluish-white color once again. “My eyes change with the magic I’m using. It’s a cosmetic thing mostly, because what of what I’m channeling. Not too different from when your eyes start glowing with your magic. When I do this, my karma shifts from what it would normally be at. This magic is as pure as it gets, which is why I can’t attack with it. I can heal and create barriers of varying kinds.” She demonstrated, creating simply shields, the dome that Error had been protected by and a full bubble appearing around Blueberry, making him float up as she moved it, which made him laugh. She chuckled and popped it, letting him go as he stood once again.

“So, if you can’t attack, how did you paralyze Nightmare?” Blueberry asked after his little bit of a giggle fit.

“Well, uh…” Jewel sweated a little. “I did something stupid.”

“You mixed your magic?!” Error suddenly scolded.

The rest of them looked confused.

“Mixed?” Red asked inquisitively. “Ain’t that kinda… ya know, normal?”

“No, my magicks can’t, well, shouldn’t, be mixed. I mix them in very small amounts on a constant basis in my normal state so I can… ya know… use them in small amounts. The healing I don’t need to fully activate my white magic, and I have the enhanced strength of my offensive… but it’s…”

“Okay,” Sans sighed. “We’re jumping again. Let’s just give her a chance to explain everything.”

Jewel nodded, thankful, and continued. “Blue, mind coming over for a sec? Red, you too.”

Blueberry blinked but he walked over. Red scoffed a little and walked over, “What for?”

“Well, I’d use Error but his stats are erratic,” she smiled a little. “I wanted to show the real purpose of the purity aura. And you and Blue are pretty different when it comes to karma and LV so…”

Red scoffed a little again but he agreed, standing beside.

“So, we need to check stats?” Sans asked. Well, this was going to be interesting.

“Yeah.” She glanced to Red and Error again. “Remember, it’s just a feeling. Nothing negative’s going to happen to you.”

The two nodded and readied themselves. This was not pleasant last time.

The white aura started to flare around Jewel once again, Red and Error both flinching a little as it did. Sans, however, with Dream, noticed the differences almost instantly.

“Oh, wow…” Dream exclaimed.

Blueberry blinked, activating his magic. He glanced over at Error and Red. It was hard to tell with Error, but Red’s stats definitely jumped up. Defensively, HP… then he looked to his and eyes went wide.

“Shit, I didn’t think…” Sans stared as his magic eye flared a bit. “We can actually get above 1HP?”

Red took a minute, looking over at Blueberry. His measly stats were skyrocketed. He had 50 health, 50 defense… his attack was still at one, but… then he looked at his own. Normally he was at 5 across, since his level was elevated, but not quite… he killed but not a lot. Papyrus definitely did more than that. But his health was at 20, his defense at 75.

“This… what is this?” Red asked. “I-I still feel like crap but…”

“The purpose of this aura is to protect those around me. It’s stronger with those of a pure heart, like Blueberry, but anyone I allow close to me, despite their alignment will still get a boost to their defensive stats. Again, this magic is purely defensive so I can’t bolster offensive techniques, but I can keep you safer. The more people in the aura, the less I can do for an individual however. My magic isn’t as concentrated as Dream’s, but it can affect a wider-array of people.”

“But why does it feel…” Error started to question.

“I can’t really help that… it’s like someone’s judging you, right? I get that feeling too, I’m hardly as pure as this magic. But it’s because it’s pure, you just… well… I don’t think it’d really matter if you actually didn’t care about what you did. It just reminds you of everything you’ve done and wish you didn’t. Kind of why I don’t use it too much. There’s always something someone regrets.”

She closed her eyes and the aura disappeared. But the stat changes remained, temporarily. As she opened her eyes to reveal them to be her normal blue once again, she explained, “The effect is temporary, but it will last for a good ten minutes. Plenty of time in a battle to turn the tide.”

“That’s kind of neat,” Sans spoke up with his trademark lazy grin. “Heh, where were you when the kid was kicking my ass in the judgement hall?”

“Heh, now that would be an unfair fight,” Jewel chuckled. “You already kill them how many times before they finally learn your pattern? And you dodge twenty times?”

“Heh, still sucks,” Sans chuckled.

“So, I assume this means we move to offensive magic now, right?” Ink asked with a grin. “C’mon, I wanna see what you can do!”

Jewel sweated a little. “I… uh… well… this… requires more explanation,” she said softly.

Blueberry instinctively started moving back a little. Red went over and started guiding him back toward Dream, who put a hand on his shoulder.

“Blue seems really freaked out over this,” Sans noticed.

“Yeah, it’s…” she sighed a little. “Well, I think Blue’s an empath too,” she brought up, making Blueberry look back over at her. “You show the classic signs,” she smiled at him. “But we can go over that later. See, the thing with my magic is… well, it’s like Dream and Nightmare. The white magic is fueled and strengthened by my positive emotions. While my offensive…”

“Negative emotions,” Dream explained with her.

“Right. I’m literally the same as both of you and that’s why my powers can’t be mixed normally. They’re not supposed to touch one another… but I’ve been experimenting for years. It’s why I can move the way I do, it’s why I’m strong… because I’m channeling the black magic of my negativity constantly. But more than that… it’s… well… I can’t use it all without unlocking it.”

“Unlocking? What you sealed your magic?” Ink questioned.

“Just… that part of it. It’s… well… I went through a lot of crap as a kid. Not saying it excuses anything, but just setting the stage here. I overdid it and the power got to be more than I could control. So… I sealed it… with a set of locks. Six to be precise. I can use a small amount normally, but to get my eyes to change color I have to unlock it.”

“So you unlocked part of it when you fought Nightmare?” Blueberry asked.

“Right… I can do a single lock without thinking too hard, it allows access to it. And one lock being released won’t reveal the others because it’s a quick solution thing, generally.”

“So, you’re going to have to unlock one to show your black magic,” Sans realized.

“Yeah. I just… don’t want to freak you guys out with it, so I’m trying to give as much warning as I can. It’s black, it’s dark and it doesn’t... well…” She sighed. “Guess I should just show you. Ya ready?”

Dream held Blueberry a little, an arm around him and nodded, prepared to have to defend against negativity. Blueberry was with him, trying to focus on his positive emotions. He got overwhelmed last time… but he needed to be there for Dream.

Jewel took a breath, closing her eyes. Unlike with her white magic, the second she release it, they all felt a push back, like a strong wind trying to blow them backward. Error physically felt himself move as he was the closest to the source, tightening his grip on his strings to stay close to her. There wasn’t much to be seen, however. When they looked up, Jewel slowly opened her eyes, revealing them to be a deep, blood red color. There was no aura, but the amount of magic she released…

“Dream, you doing okay?”

“Yeah, I’m fine,” he said, relieved. “I feel a little heavy but… it’s not like when Nightmare’s around.”

“Still negative emotions,” she reminded. “Let me know if that changes, okay? You too, Blue. You okay?”

“Y-yeah…” he stuttered, leaning into Dream a bit more.

“Damn, sweetheart, ya look like me now,” Red joked.

“Heh, you wish fangs,” Jewel smirked.

“So… what’s the difference, other than your eyes?” Ink blinked. “I can’t really… feel, ya know, so… I don’t see an aura or anything.”

“Well, that’s because only one lock is open. When all six locks are closed, there’s a small trickle, like a crack in a glass that lets out a tiny amount of water, just slowly dripping, letting it accumulate. Opening a lock makes the crack bigger, but only one is just a slightly bigger crack. The magic comes out in a steadier stream, but it’s hardly what’s behind the dam, ya know?”

“So, you’re still limited in what you can do?” Sans asked.

“Right.”

“So, how did you get through Nightmare’s magic?” Dream then asked, and the others turned to him. “You said you… got to his soul… how?”

“You…what?” Error pulled at her a little.

“Not important,” she practically waved him off. “But as for how I got through… well, I’m like him,” she said coldly. She held up an arm and black steam formed around her arm, creating a dark gauntlet with claws at the end. “He’s not the only who can create a negativity barrier. His is acidic, mine is… well, fire based. There’s a resistance, don’t get me wrong, like trying to forcefully push your hand through thick, impacted snow or dirt. If I spent enough time around him, I could probably make his magic boil too, that’d really hurt. But I’d need more magic to do it. I don’t really get enough magic this way to conjure my attacks. I just get the power boost and able to form the gauntlets.”

They all kind of stared at her. The way she spoke, the way she just waved Error off…

“You feelin’ okay, sweetheart?” Red questioned.

“Yeah you sound… off,” Ink worriedly added.

Jewel looked a bit somber for a moment before pulling back, closing her eyes. “Part of why I hate using that power. See, when I use either, my karmic meter slides… positivity and good karma, or negativity with evil karma… and I’ll admit, my personality shifts with it a little. I mean… when you’re using such negative feelings as power you kind of…”

“That would explain why Dust’s attack hurt you so badly,” Error realized. “The barrier is part of your white magic… but why does it slide like that? It doesn’t make sense?”

Jewel hesitated, but her eyes opened, back to their normal blue color. “Because…” she struggled.

“Jewel?” Dream called out gently. “If you’re uncertain…”

She took another breath and put her hand over her chest. “Because it’s not my magic I’m using.”

“What the hell do ya mean by that?” Red spoke up first.

“You’re possessed?” Sans paled, stepping back just a bit.

“Not… possessed… not in the way you’re thinking. I was born this way… but the chances it would end up like this are astronomical. I don’t even think they register,” she laughed weakly.

“So… what is it?” Ink asked, now curious. While everyone else was hesitant, Ink was the only one willing to go right into this.

“This is also why… my soul isn’t exactly…” she sweated a little. “I mean, it’s… accessible, if I allow it, but it’s why it can’t be revealed by force. Either by easy coaxing to heal, or,” she glanced back at Error, “or someone trying a more direct method.”

“Jewel?” he questioned, moving closer.

Jewel took a shaking breath. Her hand started to glow, and an outline of her soul, one they had seen before while she was healing formed. But it was what formed around her body that caused them all to stare. Glowing chains formed around her body. They all met at various spots which were the obvious locks she had described earlier. The locks themselves looked more like runes and other symbols while the chains formed bonds between them all. They snaked up her arms and legs, the locks there meeting the one at her neck and finally at her chest… and out of the runes on her chest she revealed what had been hidden…

A multi-colored human soul, Red (Determination), Purple (Perseverance), and Cyan (Patience), which seemed to have black bleeding down with the red while the white was bleeding up into the cyan. But more than that… where the white and black souls attached to it, the black soul, and part of her own, were covered in those runes.

Jewel wasn’t surprised by the gasps she heard. What she was surprised with was Ink’s boldness.

“Woah! It’s like they’re growing out of it!” he said, right up against her, his hand about to touch the white soul.

Jewel flinched, smacking his hand away. “Can you not??”

“Dude!” Sans scolded. He might not have a soul but damn, he should at least know better!

“Sorry, I was just trying to get a better look! I mean, come on, this is weirder than weird!”

“No shit!” Red barked. “But you don’t go grabbing a lady’s soul! Or anyone’s for that matter!”

Dream did get closer, however, but he focused on the two souls more. “I understand now,” he said softly, making everyone turn to him. “This is why… the white soul, your white magic, the positive emotions you use, you feel… they’re stored there, aren’t they?”

Jewel taking a minute to get over her embarrassment, slowly nodded. “Yeah. Uh…” she cleared her throat a little. “This is… I know it’s weird… like I said, this shouldn’t even… be a thing, but… it is now…”

“So… what exactly… is this?” Blueberry asked cautiously. “What was it supposed to be?”

Jewel tried to think of a way to explain it to all of them. “Uh… have you ever seen those cartoons where there’s a little devil on one shoulder and a little angel on the other, trying to tell you do various things?”

“Yeah,” Blueberry blinked, confused.

“That’s… kind of what this is,” she said softly. “Originally, it was just… like a sort of conscience thing? To help balance and guide me through my life. But as things happened… they developed more. I don’t know if I was born with my own magic aside the empathy, or if the empathy alone was enough… there are so many factors we’re not even sure about…”

“’We’re’?” Sans caught, a concerned brow furrowed.

Jewel hesitated, words caught in her throat, before she sighed. “They’re… sentient,” she admitted softly. “Angel is the white soul, Fenrir is the black soul. I can… hear them. Technically, they can take over my body but they don’t unless there’s a very good reason.”

“So, you are possessed,” Sans pointed out.

“It’s not… possession if you were born with these spirits… they were never supposed to regain their minds, they were just…” she sighed. “It’s a huge, complicated matter. See, there’s this… God, how do I even explain it?” she muttered. “I barely understand it…”

“Try me,” Sans challenged.

Jewel glared at him a little, but sighed. “There’s this reincarnation cycle that happens… human souls survive after death because they get recycled into new life. If the soul is destroyed, it can’t happen, obviously… but there’s… well, there were plenty of times in human history where population declined. There weren’t as many new lives as old ones. Especially during wars where more people died prematurely. The aforementioned is how it generically goes for almost all humans now, but… there are other scenarios…”

“How so?” Dream questioned.

“Angel and Fenrir… they’re…” she sighed a little, trying to think of how to word this. “How do I… well, see, Angel, in life, was a healer. He protected people, did what he could to ease suffering. Fenrir, on the other hand, was a warrior. They deemed him a bringer of death so he… did. He won many battles, almost singlehandedly using his magic. He was deemed too violent for reincarnation. His soul couldn’t be wiped clean. So he was paired with Angel and the two balanced each other out. Their souls were attached to another. They were to act as a conscience basically. Fenrir was to prove himself that he could warn of dangers instead of encouraging them. But… well… stuff happened in my life that… allowed both of them to regain their sentience, even though they weren’t supposed to be aware of themselves, just… feelings, ya know?”

“So… what exactly happened?” Error asked cautiously.

Jewel sighed a little. “That’s… where I’m going to need your help, Error…”


	27. Storytime: History part 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **Author’s Note: Chapters 26-29 are explanations of Jewel’s past and powers. Chapter 27-29 contain some sensitive material for certain viewers. There are no graphic scenes, but they are alluded to. Trigger warnings include child abuse, child rape, murder and suicide. These chapters are not necessary but they do go into detail about certain events and how they shaped her life. It is still a T-rated fic, just a warning to those who prefer to avoid such topics. All the flashbacks are in italics so if you want to read the summaries and questions from the characters, you can. Thank you.**

# Chapter 27 – Storytime: History part 1

Error stood beside her, his strings wrapped around her soul as it sat safely back within her chest. He had to release her hand to do this, as he needed the other to control the windows.

“Remember, you have to think clearly on these for me to align the timeline,” he reminded her. When she nodded, he stood there, waiting one a moment before asking. “You’re sure you want to do it this way?”

“You heard what I mess I was trying to explain my magic… there’s so many things I’ll just… confuse everyone. It’s for the best.”

Error hesitated a moment before reaching over to her. His right hand, the one attached to her soul with his strings, increased the slack so he could grab her hand with his own. He glitched, but he didn’t care. He wasn’t an empath, but he knew this feeling. He didn’t even tell everything, just showed Blueberry how he met Toriel, the first time he escaped the anti-void… to show this much, and it was clear she didn’t want to, he wanted her to know he was there. Jewel turned her head to face him, and laced her fingers with his, gripping his hand. He could feel her trembling.

“If you need to stop, just let me know,” he told her softly.

“Right,” she whispered, taking a breath and closing her eyes.

“Let’s start easy, okay? Maybe something that’s not quite as… important, but...”

“But nearby, got it,” she said with a soft breath.

Ink, Dream, Blueberry, Red and Sans were standing nearby, waiting for them to start, silently. None wanted to risk the concentration. Blueberry in particular wasn’t certain he should have brought this up to her before. To have her life played out? He knew some of it, she was pretty open about her past with her father… it was horrible to hear just those vague details, but now to see it? He stayed very close to Ink and Dream.

Finally, the pixelated window appeared as Error attempted to pull up the timeline. It was grainy, glitch at first. Not surprising, since he didn’t know exactly where it was and this was trial and error on both of their parts. No one complained… but soon it came into focus…

_A small child, a toddler, with bright blue eyes wearing a green dress with a big white bow wrapped around her middle at her back was running around. She had thick, wild curls that bounced as she ran from a woman, giggling. The woman had dark blonde hair and faded blue eyes, wearing simple black dress pants and a fluffy off-white blouse. She managed to grab the little girl and pick her up as she happily squealed in delight. However, the giggles died the second a man walked into the room. He had steely-blue eyes and dark orange-red hair that was starting to bald, with a matching mustache and beard that was neatly trimmed, hardly more than ¼” from his face. The little girl clung to the woman and they were soon called back into the room…_

“What was that?” Ink questioned.

“A non-important memory… I barely remember it, so I figured it was a good place to start,” Jewel explained. “But that was me and my parents.”

“That was you? You looked so different…” Blueberry spoke in awe. “Your hair isn’t like that anymore.”

“Heh, it’s amazing what time can do to you…” She then turned to Error. “You doing all right?”

“Yeah… just another one like that. I’m still trying to figure out when all this is.”

“All right.”

_The same small girl in teal pants and a pink shirt sat quietly next to her father in a hallway. Her feet swung under the chair she was sitting in, too high for her legs to reach the ground. She was older, but not by too much. A nurse came out and motioned for the father to follow._

_“Don’t move,” he scolded, almost threatened, once the nurse was gone before rushing after her._

_The young child sat there, confused, looking at the door, but did not move… at least for ten minutes. Then she couldn’t take it anymore. She managed to climb down and tried to reach for the handle. But the door opened and out came her father. He didn’t say a word, simply scooped her up and they started walking down the maze of corridors, following behind the nurse. They made it to another door where they waited for a moment, before they were told they were allowed to enter by another nurse. Once inside, there was her mother on the bed, holding a newborn baby. Her father carried her to the bed and sat her down beside her mother. Her eyes got big as she stared down at the little baby. With her mother’s help, she even got to hold it while she sat beside her._

Sans and Red, the only two big brothers, recognized that feeling instantly and both were grinning.

“How old were ya, sweetheart?”

“Hm? Oh, I was almost four then,” she said softly. “Just two months away. It was kind of funny, my brother and I were both born on the fifth of our month, on a Saturday in the afternoon. We were very close growing up.”

_The screen changed to showing a slightly bigger baby brother, being held and carried around by the small child, struggling, to carry him a bit._

Chuckles were had across the room. This wasn’t so bad!

“I practically raised him. After about a year,” she trailed off as the screen before them started to change again, “Mom gave up, just kind of focusing on work and going to bed when she got home.”

_The woman who had seemed so happy before just seemed so exhausted. She’d come home and just plop on the couch. A crying baby was in on the floor on a blanket, and a tiny Jewel would go over and try and get her mom’s attention to feed her little brother. But she wouldn’t get up. Jewel had the most adorable pouty face for such a serious situation, but she went into the kitchen and pulled out a jar of apple sauce and a spoon, walking over and feeding it to her baby brother. It was messy, and Jewel would take a spoonful of sauce for herself too in-between her brother’s bites._

“I’d do what I could. I mean, the hell’s a five-year-old supposed to do in that situation? He ate a lot of applesauce back then, it’s no wonder he grew to hate it,” she chuckled softly.

_Then her father came into the house. The little version of their friend tensed and grabbed her little brother, who simply gnawed on the now empty spoon, trying for more apple sauce. Steely eyes narrowed and he grabbed the tired mother by her arm and dragged her to the other room where screams and slaps were soon heard. Jewel curled around her little brother, who was oblivious to the sounds, as if trying to protect him from something he clearly didn’t understand… but she did._

“And that was our daily life for a while… at least when we were small we were… sort of safe. Well, my brother was. I didn’t really care. Heh, I was stupid, I didn’t realize my dad actually wouldn’t hit my brother when he was that small… as much of a douche he was, at least he had that going for him.”

_There were various scenes of Jewel purposely antagonizing her father when he was in a mood and approaching her brother, even scenes biting him. They sort of jumped around as the memories all flooded together._

The jumbled memories didn’t help Error in pulling up the timelines. Then again, he was also distracted a little by the revelation. And he wasn’t the only one. Red instantly knew where this was going the second her father threatened her in the hospital. He hoped he was wrong, but seeing him grab her mother like that… in a second he went and was on her opposite side from Error with a hand on her shoulder. Though, the scene of her biting her dad, well, he had to laugh because, well… that was him in a nutshell. He had done the same, he was just older… and he lost a tooth for it.

“You got what you need, Error?” Jewel suddenly asked.

“Y-yeah, I think so,” he snapped back to reality. “Just… try and keep your thoughts clear, okay? Otherwise they’re going to jumble like that.”

“Maybe skip the beatings from here on out?” Sans suggested. “I mean, if your world wasn’t already gone, I’d say let me have a word with him but…” He was trying very hard to not let his eye flare up.

“Heh, get in line,” Red added in.

“Well, like I said before… most of this doesn’t really matter. There’s nothing that can be done about it,” Jewel tried once again. “But you want to know, so you can understand… Don’t worry, I don’t plan on focusing on the violence, it’s not a fun thing to relive.”

“Did we… have to learn about this?” Ink then asked as he looked back at her.

“Well… kind of… if not now then later… the way my dad treats me and my brother plays a much bigger part down the line… and my mom’s absenteeism…” she sighed a little. “Ready for the real stuff?”

“It’s not… scary is it?” Blueberry asked.

Jewel hesitated. “Well… you’re about to see me get into my first fight and it does get bloody,” Jewel warned. “It’s quick, but it’s important. Kind of started the domino effect. But… Blue… a lot of my life is violent and dark… if you don’t want to…”

“No, I want to know,” he said, determined. “I want to help you.”

“Okay,” she sighed, syncing up another memory with Error. “I was in the second grade. There was this lunch program in my school that helped poor kids like me afford hot lunches and my mom just gave me money to bring in whenever it ran out. Apparently I wasn’t as careful as I thought because one kid noticed the pattern…

_A small, seven-year-old Jewel was walking down the hall from her class to the lunchroom. She had stayed after to help her teacher tidy up and she grabbed her money from her backpack and put it in her pocket. She tried to quickly walk to the cafeteria, without trying to run in the hall when this tall brute of a child, somehow unbelievingly still ten years old, cornered her as she walked by the bathroom._

_“Hey brat.”_

_“E-excuse me,” the small Jewel said as she tried to get around him._

_“Nah, you and I are gonna have a little chat,” he said, grabbing her arm. The small girl winced, looking up at him, a knowing fear in her eyes. “You’re gonna give me that lunch money of yours.”_

_“B-but I need it.”_

_“Don’t care. Give it.”_

_“M-mom said…”_

_His patience wore thin, and he didn’t give her a chance to finish. His fist came down and he hit her hard on her skull. “Last chance.”_

_“P-please,” she sobbed._

_The bully grabbed her by her shirt and slammed her hard into the wall, a sickening crack rang through them as blood appeared on the brick behind her. The force knocked the money clear from her loose pockets. He simply dropped her and went to scoop it up._

The skeletons all visibly paled as they knew that sound. The telltale sound of a skull cracking under pressure. But then, Jewel spoke.

“And that was when my life changed… he woke up the beast.” All eyes went back to the scene.

_The small frame of the girl, blood dripping from the back of her head, started to move. She sat up, on her hands and knees, as her curls fell out of view of her now completely blackened eyes… feral growls escaped her throat as tiny little baby fangs appeared on her canines… As the bully bent down to get the money, she lunged and bit his shoulder while pushing against his back. He screamed and threw her. She slid, but with a twisted prize still in her mouth from his shoulder that she quickly swallowed…_

“Enough! Please,” Blueberry pleaded and the timeline stopped.

“The fuck?!” Sans paled.

“How the fuck did you get away with that? How did no one hear any of that?” Ink exclaimed.

“I have no fucking idea,” Jewel kind of laughed behind them, everyone turning to her. “The whole situation is just so bizarre! I barely remember anything about that, seeing it again just makes me wonder what the fuck the teachers were doing. I vaguely remember one in the office patching up my head and calling my mom, but my mom couldn’t come get me, so I had to stay in school. I don’t know what happened to that kid after. He was the kind to get embarrassed by a little girl taking him down, but I ripped a chunk out of his shoulder, you’d think someone would have noticed… then again, if he just ran out and ditched…”

“Seems ya really like ta bite though,” Red teased.

“Really,” Dream sighed.

“Heh, I did it a lot too, what can I say. Though… what’s with the fangs, sweetheart?” Red then asked. “You seemed to grow sharper teeth right then.”

“Heh, I did say he awoke the beast. That was Fenrir, and the reason my eyes went black I’m guessing. They weren’t… conscious at that point. It was the first time they ever made themselves known, actually. Even this much, I didn’t remember until years later, but chronologically, this was what allowed the rest of the events to have the cascading effect it did. If this didn’t happen, the next wouldn’t have.”

“So if they weren’t conscious… what the hell just happened when he possessed you?” Sans asked.

“It was a primal reaction… an unconscious spirit with a sudden need for self-preservation… or in this case… well…” Jewel closed her eyes, chuckling softly. “As Angel put it, they pretty much suck at their job. Too attached to the mortal realm. They were supposed to be wiped clean, just a karmic guide, do the right thing, stay out of trouble, that whole deal. But… between my empathy and the years of abuse… Angel theorizes that, like with all of you, there was just something that resonated with them. When my head cracked, it sent a shock through my soul and Fenrir just… reacted. It was for a split second, but that was all it took.”

“Well, fucker deserved it,” Red muttered.

“It was a child,” Dream protested.

“An asshole child picking on a smaller child that cracked her skull! Not fun to deal with, ya know,” he muttered, pointing to the scar on his own skull. “Shit hurts. Besides, it’s Jewel. I’d kick the fucker down a set of stairs if this wasn’t just a memory,” he muttered

“You would,” Sans rolled his eyes, but he had a bit of a smirk.

“So… you said the next part was reliant upon this?” Dream asked.

“Yeah,” Jewel replied. “The next part is… especially…” she couldn’t even describe it, really. “Just… warning all of you, but it’s… how and why I discovered my magic.”

There were glances between the skeletons, even Error and Red glanced at each other as they were the ones beside Jewel. Error squeezed her hand a little as he pulled up the next memory’s timeline.

_It seemed to have been another year since the last memory. Jewel awoke from bed, slightly red in the face with a small cough. She literally dragged herself out of bed. Despite it, however, she got ready for school. She pulled out her navy dress. It was a simple style, a white collar at the neck, pinched at the waist with belt made of the same fabric and went to her knees. The young girl moved so slowly, as if her body was filled with wet sand. She came out and noticed that her mother had already left for work… it was her father who was there, which was unusual._

_“Dad?” she worked her courage up to talk to him. A small cough escaped her. “I don’t feel good…”_

_“Don’t care, get your ass ready to go.”_

_“Can I at least get some medicine?”_

_The man grumbled as he rose. It was a reasonable enough request. He wouldn’t have to deal with her… he went to the kitchen and looked above the refrigerator. He increasingly got more frustrated the longer the search took._

_“Your fucking mother doesn’t have fucking shit here,” he growled. “Just get going!”_

_“But… you’re supposed to take me,” she reminded._

_“It’s right the fuck around the damn corner! Just fucking go!”_

_“But…”_

_He grabbed her by her arm and literally threw her out the screen door. It never latched properly and she went right through it. She met the metal porch that was supposed to attach to the trailer in which she lived. She fell with it, the metal stairs falling atop of her. She whimpered as she slowly got out from underneath it. She looked down at her ankle, which was now bleeding. She rolled her socks down, making a sort of make-shift gauze pad to absorb the blood and hopefully not rub against it too badly and hide the injury, the other just to match. She stood up and picked up the stairs, with a little difficulty and pushed it up against the trailer once again. She took a minute to cough against it, while wiping away some tears that had started to fall. She had to calm down before she started moving._

_Her father was right. Just looking from her yard, she could see her school, separated by a fence next to the street on the other side of her trailer park home. But she had to walk out of the park first. She took a breath and started walking up the street, taking another at the front of house as there was a sidewalk attached to the front of the trailers. Sort of. She limped as she walked, the cut on her ankle really stinging and bothering her. As she made it to the front of the trailer park, the school in full view from her spot near the street, a car suddenly turned and made a beeline for her. She tried to turn and run, but her ankle hurt. The backdoor flung open and a pair of hands grabbed her and pulled her into the back of the car. She would have screamed, but a hand went over her mouth. She tried to bite the hand, flailing against her abductor, but a knife was quickly pressed against her neck. Fear ran through the young girl and she was pinned to the backseat of the car. The man above her, not too old, at most a young adult, just barely out of his teens, leered down at her with a predatory smile. Tears lined the young girls eyes as the knife pressed firmer against her neck, his hand started to go up her thigh and under her skirt…_

The picture stared to distort, luckily for all the skeletons who just stood there, absolutely frozen with a look of horror on their faces. Error slowly snapped out of it first, feeling Jewel tremble against him as she stopped the memory on her own, Error too horrified to even think of it. He glanced over at her as he saw her entire frame just trembling as she was forced to re-watch probably one of the most horrific memories of her entire life.

“Heh, yeah… you don’t need to see that,” she managed to mutter out.

He was already at his limit, as much as he wanted to, he couldn’t physically bring himself to grab her. His hand tightened around hers, trying his best. Though it seemed he wasn’t the only one with that had the thought to comfort her.

Blueberry, the second that screen went white, went over and grabbed her around the middle, tears in his eyes as he held her as tightly as he could. “Jewel,” he sobbed.

She focused a bit on the skeleton clinging to her and started to stroke his skull. She couldn’t stop her trembling to keep it unnoticeable… and she didn’t really care at this point. She was sharing it with these people, she was allowed to be vulnerable for a change… right?

“See, this is why I don’t like to talk about it. There was nothing any of you could have done. Hell, you weren’t even alive at that point. I’m over it, really,” she promised, “It’s just, watching it…”

Red’s hand squeezed on her shoulder, never having moved from before, especially as the memory started with more of her dad’s abuse. “Please tell me you murdered the fuckers for this and that’s how you discovered your magic,” Red seethed, his magic starting to flare.

“Not quite, Red,” Jewel responded sadly.

“What the hell is more traumatic than that?” Sans then questioned, horrified. “What the hell more did you need to have your magic triggered?”

Jewel wrapped her arm around Blueberry tightly as she focused on the next part of the memory, her shaking hand holding onto Error as if he was her lifeline.

A gunshot rang out, startling all the skeletons, Blueberry jumping as Jewel pressed him against her, as if protecting him.

“What was… that?” Ink questioned, his hand shaking a little.

“A gun,” Jewel explained as the image started to come back.

_The two men, the one in the back and the driver, stood with a smoking gun in driver’s hand._

_“Fucking brat,” he muttered as he shook out his hand, having been bit during the struggle. The two then ran off._

_They were in a different area than the skeletons saw before. It was a warehouse, dirty, abandoned, and dark. Laying on the ground was the small version of Jewel, eyes barely awake, wheezing, blood dripping from her mouth, a gunshot in her stomach just oozing blood as it poured out… along with the damage done during the assault which left her legs covered in blood with her underwear cut off and discarded to the side. Her breathing slowed and her eyes closed._

_And then, nothing…_

“N-no, this can’t… you’re right here, you’re all right!” Ink shook.

“Jewel… d-did you…?” Sans hesitated with the question.

“Technically, I did,” Jewel said, feeling Blueberry shake against her as he turned to look at the screen. “But… the thing about humans… is we have a window of revival time after our hearts stop. Like a computer, we have a chance to reboot and reload our bodily functions to keep us alive…”

_Magic started to pulse from the small, lifeless body, forcing her heart to kick back on. Her eyes opened as magic started swirling around. One eye had a thin red ring around her pupil, while the other had an almost white ring. White and black magic swirled around dangerously, causing the tiny girl to thrash violently as her body couldn’t handle the influx of magic. Fangs started to appear as her pupils dilated into slits. Claws gashed the ground, slits being carved into the concrete. It was a violent few moments as Jewel’s small frame was ravaged by magic that shouldn’t be touching. The monsters would be able to see it in the window, her soul started to crack before the white magic retreated to the background. Jewel’s tiny frame began to pant as both her eyes held a red ring around the pupil now, but the fangs remained. Slowly, she managed to stand up, holding a hand to where she had been shot. Black smoke started to emanate and cauterized the wound, stopping it from bleeding as her legs slowly began to work underneath her._

“Huh… guess I did have soul damage before,” Jewel offhandedly commented. “I’ll be honest, I don’t remember this part… makes sense though…”

“Stop, can we just… stop?” Sans asked, looking back at her. He couldn’t help it, he walked over to her. “I know I asked you to be open but...” Holy shit, seeing it was on a completely different level. A shaking hand went and placed it on her left arm, reaching over Blueberry. “I… I didn’t…”

“I told you I went through some shit,” she half joked, still trembling a little. She leaned in, her arm moving from Blueberry to gently caress Sans’ cheek.

“That’s not shit, that’s fucking hell,” Ink commented as he also walked over. He couldn’t even comprehend… what would make someone do something like that… how to process it…

“They… didn’t get away with it, did they?” Dream then asked. “Someone stopped them, right?” he almost pleaded.

Jewel hesitated with the response. “I never told anyone what they did to me,” she admitted. “When they found out I survived, they hunted me down. Not hard, considering they snatched me up between home and school. They threatened my little brother’s life if I told anyone so, I never did.”

Instant rage from the two older brothers, Red and Sans had to calm themselves down. “Mother fuckers,” Red seethed.

Error was silent, but inside he was battling the rage that was starting to take him. This was his friend, the person he cared about most in the world. Someone who had endured so much of his bullshit, literally almost dying by his hand… to see her having gone through this and hearing they got away with it? Including harassing her afterward? His hand shook with rage as he held hers as tightly as he could.

“How much… more did you want to show us?” Sans then asked. “I don’t know if I can take anything else like that…”

“Well, it…” Jewel sighed a little. “I can…” she rubbed her head, trying to figure out how best to do this. That was really intense… “I didn’t really realize Angel and Fenrir were there until after I started learning about magic. “If you rather… I can try and explain it again. I’ll probably jump around though…”

Sans sighed a little. “Is anything as bad as… that?”

“A… couple,” she admitted. “I mean, they come back, so…”

There was silence as they all internally debated what to do. They were already in this deep, but did they want to see it all play out before them? Couldn’t they just take her word for it? But she was struggling to talk now… was it really important to keep going? She’d close up again if they left it now, wouldn’t she?

“I… I want to keep going,” Blueberry broke the silence. He looked up at Jewel. “You said no one ever believed in you before. Well, I do. You’ve survived all this before, somehow, and I… I know you’re a good person, even after all of this. I want to know. I want to know so I can help you see what a good person you are. To have so much positivity even after that?” Blueberry motioned back to the now black window, “That takes a lot of courage. To think you did all that on your own scares me.”

“Well… I wasn’t totally alone. I didn’t tell anyone about what happened, no… in fact my dad beat me when I got home for skipping school.”

Skeletal eyes blackened all around, except Error, his were red.

“He… did what now?” Red seethed. “How the fuck did he miss the gapin’ hole in your stomach!?” he yelled.

“It rained after that. Dark dress, hand over it, most of the blood was either washed or hidden. It was a long walk home, apparently… I just went home and… apparently basic first aid was something I knew, or that was Angel or Fenrir’s doing. I dug out the bullet and patched myself up and just… fell asleep. Probably their doing. I mean, I was eight, I don’t think I knew that much at that point. Plus, it’s still all kind of a blur…”

“Please don’t pull it up to check, I can’t…” Sans muttered.

“How about… I go into what happened next. It’s not necessarily important but…it helps explain some things I suppose. And it’ll show you some of the support I did have, even if it wasn’t much.”

Blueberry looked up at her as she gently stroked his skull, before he nodded. “Okay!”

“How about we all sit down though, it’s been a hell of a ride.”

“Heh, can you fit six skeletons around you?” Sans then asked. “Because, like hell are you not sitting alone at this point.”

“Well… as unconventional as it is right now…” Jewel chuckled a little and with her right hand, she snapped a large couch into the Doodlesphere, made out of red crystal. It was just habit at this point to use the red crystal for furniture because of Error.

“The hell?” Red questioned as he turned back.

Jewel, with Error, went back and sat on the end of the couch, Error silently taking his spot on the armrest beside her, still holding her hand. “Come on, it’s more comfortable than it looks.”

Blueberry instantly went up and curled into her lap.

“Easy, watch the strings,” she chuckled a little. But she curled up with the little Blueberry in her lap, leaning a bit more into the couch near Error as they still held hands. Error was a little uneasy with Blueberry so close, but didn’t say anything.

It was unnerving that Error was so quiet. Maybe he was purposely doing so to keep focused. The rest of them were losing their minds well enough with what they learned.

Ink, broke the tension and went and plopped down, surprisingly bouncing on the couch! “Oh wow! It’s like there’s water inside!” Ink grinned as he bounced a little more.

Red, Sans, and Dream all rose brows but went over. Dream sat on the far end, happy to give up a spot closer to Jewel for the other two. Sans moved his way in to sit on the opposite side of Jewel, glancing at her with concern in his eyes, Red sat beside him, pushing Ink off. Ink protested but he had no problem sitting on the top of the couch near her. There was a space between her and Error for his legs after all and he could easily pet her from here.

Jewel glanced up at Error, who took a breath. He then nodded while gripping her hand tightly.

“So, after this… obviously, I wasn’t a very happy kid,” Jewel started to explain as they all got comfortable. “I was acting out, and people being miserable around me only made things worse. I didn’t know I was an empath at this point, but my dad was starting to suspect…”

“Wait, your dad actually knew what you were?” Ink questioned.

“Well, my dad… actually had some experience with magic when he was younger. Nothing like what you guys do, but… he had a friend who practiced and like me she toted the line between white and black. She was hardly what I’d call a good person, but she tried. She had made her mistakes in life, like knowing my dad. It was strange, because to her, my dad was a safe place. The one dude who wouldn’t touch her after she had been beaten by other men… But my dad loved her, not my mom, so I suppose that made sense. But she refused to let him “break up the family”. Kind of wish she did, I would have been happier,” Jewel muttered a little.

“Fuck your dad,” Red muttered.

“Agreed, wholeheartedly,” Sans nodded as he gently put a hand on Jewel’s arm as it was around Blueberry.

“Heh, well, he was still my dad. I actually cared, ya know? For a while anyway. But he did do this one good thing for me. Other than helping make my brother, getting me in contact with his friend was probably the best thing that happened, I started learning.”

_They were in a restaurant. Jewel’s father sat beside her as the ten-year-old girl sat there, anxious. A small woman, about 5’4” with stringy, scraggily blonde hair came up. Her eyes were sunken in and she easily looked twice her age._

“The fuck?” Error muttered, finally speaking.

“Yeah, I know. Don’t do drugs,” Jewel chuckled softly. “She’s actually 9 years younger than my dad, I think it was.”

“Shit…” Sans muttered.

“Yeah, I remember thinking she really did look like the witches in storybooks,” Jewel chuckled softly.

_But it wasn’t that kind of magic this woman was there to teach. She sat across from her, giving Jewel test after test, seeing what her magical limits were. Empathy was easy, but there was also mention of mind-reading and projection and variety of other things. It was the one time her father actually paid attention to her in a positive light._

“She utterly freaked me out,” Jewel admitted. “She seemed like such a bad person at the time… kids are horrible judges of character,” she chuckled a little. “She had been through some shit too, and I think she sensed it in me. But she never said anything to my father. I respected her for that. This became a normal thing for about a year, she helped me with my empathy, tried to teach me other magic for a while. Never really caught on, though.”

“I dunno, you kind of act like a mind reader sometimes,” Ink grinned. “Sure that part didn’t stick?”

Jewel chuckled. “Not like what you’re thinking. It’s pretty easy to guess at certain things and press enough to get you guys to give me answers with just the empathy. Except you, mister,” she smacked Ink’s leg lightly.

Ink laughed, snorting a little. It brought up the whole room a little. Getting away from the horrible thing they had witnessed prior. It seemed like Jewel was getting help.

“Seems like your dad was thrilled you had magic in you,” Blueberry commented softly.

“I don’t know about thrilled… maybe he just finally thought I wasn’t useless anymore. Either way, after the training stopped it was never really ever brought up again.”

“Why did it stop?” Dream asked.

“Because she had to move. Her own demons started following her, and it became too much to meet with her. We would talk online, but she got so… weird. She deteriorated quickly and it was just too much. I couldn’t do it. I could _feel_ everything through the computer screen, weirdly transmitted. Maybe it was because we knew each other and it was just two empaths connecting, I don’t know. But I felt like I was getting crazier talking to her. So I backed out of there real quick.”

“But you had other people to talk to, right?” Sans asked.

“Well, yeah. My parents were crap but their parents were pretty cool. Heh, my mom’s father was actually someone I respected a lot. He was a marine, and if there was anyone I should have opened up to about what happened to me, it was him. He didn’t take crap. He put his own sons, my uncles, down all the time, and he stood up to my father constantly.”

_A memory started to play, the same young Jewel as the previous one. It was Christmas and she was sitting in a chair with a big present that was easily 2/3 of her size. She excitedly opened it up and it was a giant art kit. It was a giant sketchpad with watercolors, oil pastels, crayons, marks, colored pencils and a wide array of colors._

_Jewel flinched as instantly her father ripped it from her hands, the joy in her eyes being snuffed out almost instantly._

_“The fuck, she doesn’t need this baby crap!”_

Ink instantly tensed up, his cheeks puffing out and he looked ready to punch the image of the man.

_“You give my Missy back her present,” a booming voice came from a tall man, about 6’4”, pure white hair and beard, bald on the top of his head. He had thick reading glasses and wore suspenders. He stood taller over her father. His grip relinquished and he took the kit back, which had a strap to carry over her shoulder. The grandfather went over and handed it back to her. A large hand gently patted her, mussing her curly hair. “Don’t you ever let anyone take anything that makes you happy away, okay? If drawing makes you happy, you do it, no matter what anyone else says.”_

_“She’s got no talent,” her father muttered._

_“Because you won’t let it grow!” her grandfather barked. “Now go sit in the kitchen and go clean up or something, I'm not letting you ruin this for the kids!”_

_Her father skulked off to the kitchen and the grandfather turned, smiling kindly at her. “Sorry about that, Missy. Now, how about another present from Grandma and Grandpa?”_

“Okay, I like your grandfather,” Ink smirked. “Your dad is a serious asshole! He really said that??”

“Yeah, he was never really into my drawing anything. It was fine as a kid, but as I got older, he said I needed to give it up. He was not thrilled when my grandfather said that. He really backed off when his mother agreed with him, which was rare. Babci hated my mother’s side of the family.”

“Babci?” Dream questioned.

“Ah, it’s Polish for grandmother. She was Polish and the idea of being called “Grandma” made her feel old,” she chuckled. “But she was also the only one fluent in it, so I have no idea how that worked.”

“What about her husband?” Blueberry than asked.

“Oh, my dad’s father died long before I was born. So I only had the three of them. It was fine though, they more than made up for it. I wish I could have seen Grandma and Grandpa more, but they lived further and Babci was only about a mile away. She also started watching me and my brother after school. She was a legend, let me tell you,” she chuckled.

“How?” Red asked with a bit of a smirk.

“She’s where I got my attitude from,” Jewel laughed. “She taught me a lot, including how not to take shit from anyone, even my dad.” As the memory started to fade in, she smiled. “She’s also the one who taught me how to cook. The frosting and cake recipes I use are hers.”

_Jewel was in the kitchen with her Babci, an older woman with the classic grandma curls done up. Her hair was a rich golden color, from a bottle, but still. She had this giant smile and even had a golden tooth visible when she smiled. They were frosting a cake while her little brother played in the living room in front of the TV with Legos. A knock at the door got their attention. Jewel went open the door, struggling a little with the solid wooden door as she pulled it open. Standing outside on the porch was teenager, and Jewel started backing up a little._

_The grandmother, however, didn’t flinch and opened the door with Jewel following, walking onto the porch with her, shutting the door. “Hello, what can I do for you?”_

_“You can tell this bitch to give me back my backpack!” he growled._

_“Excuse me?”_

_“This bitch stole my backpack with my pencil case! It has all my money in it!”_

_“Oh, I see. So… you’re the one who gave my little Miss the bruise on her ribs, hm?”_

_“What? No!”_

_“Oh, really? You didn’t kick her down and steal her bag, walk around claiming it as yours? What’s so special about a simple black backpack, hm? Or did you want the trading cards she carried to school? The ones you still have?”_

_The kid started to back up a little._

_“You have some nerve, kid! You come to MY house, demanding that MY granddaughter gives you back her property, which she took back from a thief! I should whip you right here for what you have done!”_

_“You can’t do that! I’ll tell my mom!”_

_“Good! You tell her! Then when she comes I’ll whip her too for raising such an entitled brat as a child! Now get the hell off my property before I make you!”_

_The kid stood firm, but she simply pulled the spoon out from her apron pocket and chased him down the steps. He took off running in seconds and the woman just started chuckling._

_She leaned in and kissed Jewel on the forehead. “That’s my good girl, I knew you could do it. We’ll get those cards and your sketchbook back, just wait. I’ll talk with the school tomorrow when I drop you off. Now, let’s get back. I can’t wait to show the girls at work how good you’re getting at decorating!”_

There was a bit of an uproar of laughter as the grandmother chased the kid off the porch with a spoon.

“Okay, she’s epic!” Ink grinned.

“Totally! Old lady got spunk!” Red grinned. “I like her! How did she give birth to such an asshole?”

“Eh, sometimes, you miss things. She worked a lot, and dad worked with his father as he had his own business. Apparently he was an asshole too. Not to mention she always said he was a bit of a mini-me of her father, who was an asshole too.”

“I dun buy that genetic bullshit,” Red muttered. “Ya learn this shit, yer not born one way or another.”

“Dude, our existence kind of proves that,” Sans laughed.

Jewel chuckled a little. “I mean, you can see soon that… well…” she sighed a little. “I suppose we should get back on track. More magic learning.”

“Wait, I do have a question, though,” Ink tilted his head. “Why do they call you Missy or Miss?”

“Ya know, I missed that. Did they?” Sans questioned.

“Because Jewel isn’t my real name,” she explained “After everything, I decided I needed a new one, and after my world was gone, well, didn’t seem appropriate to use my old one. So...”

“So your real name is Missy?” Blueberry asked.

“No,” Jewel chuckled. “And honestly I hated that so much. Made me feel like a doll. But you can’t tell grandparents anything. That was a nickname too.”

“So… you gonna make us guess?” Sans questioned.

Jewel chuckled a little and sighed. “Okay, fine, but you’re not allowed to call me this, I’ll beat you,” she warned playfully. “My name was Melissa.”

“Sounds pretty,” Blueberry said as he got a little closer to her.

“Eh, well… It’s been too long, I don’t like it anymore. My brother was the only one who really called me by my real name and with him gone…”

“It’s all right,” Sans said softly. “You don’t have to explain it. I mean, hell, you still call me Classic, and the rest of us have nicknames too. We know you as Jewel anyway, it’d be weird to change it now.”

“Besides, Jewel fits you better,” Ink grinned. “Look at all the crap you went through, you definitely came shining out like a diamond, not to mention all the jewels you can create!”

“Those are technically crystals,” she clarified.

“Still a type of jewel!”

“Type of rock,” Jewel chuckled.

“Oh quit arguing,” Ink laughed.

Chuckles were had, but Jewel slowly got serious, though her head rested against Ink’s knee as he sat there beside her, causing him to reach down and gently stroke her hair. “Well, back to storytime,” Jewel took a breath and squeezed Error’s hand.

“Nothing bad happens, right?” Blueberry asked

“Well, not for a bit. There’s always something that happens,” Jewel explained.


	28. Storytime: History part 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **Author’s Note: Chapters 26-29 are explanations of Jewel’s past and powers. Chapter 27-29 contain some sensitive material for certain viewers. There are no graphic scenes, but they are alluded to. Trigger warnings include child abuse, child rape, murder and suicide. These chapters are not necessary but they do go into detail about certain events and how they shaped her life. It is still a T-rated fic, just a warning to those who prefer to avoid such topics. All the flashbacks are in italics so if you want to read the summaries and questions from the characters, you can. Thank you.**

# Chapter 28 – Storytime: History part 2

_It seemed another couple years had passed since the last one. Jewel was taller, starting to become more feminine. Her eyes were also colder at this point. Some scars were visible on her upper arms under her t-shirt and the marks on her forearm weren’t missed by the skeletons. She didn’t even try to hide them at this point in her life._

“You’re… how old here?” Sans asked cautiously.

“Twelve,” Jewel said. “I’ll be thirteen by the end of this sequence,” she explained. “I really had a lot of issues,” she admitted. “I got into fights a lot, just for the sake of having something to hit. As you’ll soon see.”

_Jewel had hopped a fence to sneak into a carnival. She easily stole some tickets that were used for admission and was just walking around. Nothing really appealed to her… Her attention was on a ride that flung people upside down and spun them before swinging back up, doing the same and just in general seemed to make stomach’s flip when she was lurched forward by someone running into her. She turned back and glared, immediately assuming someone was trying to start something with her, when she was taken by surprise. A boy about her age had fallen after crashing into her. His arm was bleeding and he had gotten blood on her shirt, which she seemed rather angry with. But he didn’t even seem to notice her anger. He quickly apologized and ran off. She scoffed, debating if he was worth the effort or not… but something in her made her turn her head as she saw a group of five teenagers, sixteen to eighteen walking over._

_“Bitch, did you see this little asshole with blonde hair run through here?” one demanded._

_“Excuse me?” she snarled. “The fuck do you think you are? Better back off before that mouth of yours tries to write a check your ass can’t cash.”_

_“The fuck you say to me bitch?” he growled, trying to size up to this girl who only went up to his shoulder._

_“You heard me asshole. Now walk away before you have to leave in a body bag,” she sneered._

_The second that man threw a punch, it was over for him. Jewel curled her first and met him half way, his fist missing her as hers connected and send him falling back with a crack, his nose broken and gushing blood. She growled, focusing on the other four as they started coming for her. They had no coordination whatsoever. It was easy to trip them up, and then she started stomping on one dude’s ribs, not caring if he was down. When another got up, she focused on him, kicking him hard in the knee and breaking it. It soon followed suit with most of the men getting something broken before scurrying off with their figurative tails between their legs._

_“Mother fuckers,” Jewel growled before hearing someone else coming up behind her. She rolled her fist, ready attack, but it was a security guard._

_“Absolutely no fighting on fairgrounds!” he scolded._

_“Those fuckers attacked me!”_

_“Right, and you’re not part of that group?” he rolled his eyes. “Get moving.” He went to grab her arm and she ripped it from him._

_“I’m fucking twelve you moron! Now fuck off, your stupid carnival is fucking lame anyway,” she muttered before leaving, the guard following her the whole way. Once she was outside, she flipped him the bird and continued to walk off, kicking a rock on the street._

_“Didn’t want to fuckin’ go anyway,” she muttered, throwing the tickets out of her pocket and onto the ground._

“Oh Stars!” Sans burst out laughing, unable to stop himself. “Sorry, sorry, but oh my stars! I can see Red!” he laughed, falling back into the couch.

Ink snickered and snorted, unable to stop now that it was going and Jewel joined in, bursting out with laughter. “Oh god. Well, I did say my world was just like his.”

Red had a dusting of red through his cheekbones. “I dun act like that! She’s a kid!”

“Yeah, you do,” Sans laughed at him. “Every time you don’t get your way! Yell and scream and then pout!”

Even Dream and Blueberry had soft chuckles. Error had this small smirk and a bit of a snicker. Red was starting to steam a bit. They were making fun of him! But then he felt a hand take his, and he looked across, seeing Jewel reaching over Sans to him.

“Red, ya gotta learn to laugh at yourself a little. Once you do, no one can make fun of you. You gotta own your actions, then they got nothing. Besides, Sans isn’t picking on you.”

“Nah man,” Sans started to calm down, but he was still grinning with a few tears in his eyes from laughing so hard. “It’s just… Jewel really is just like us,” he said with a grin. “Just missing the puns,” he teased.

“Eh, to be fair, I loved them as a kid, but my range was limited, I was weird. I read the dictionary in my spare time back then,” she chuckled. “I didn’t start picking them back up until after I got trapped in the code.”

“Wait, what?” Sans asked, sobering a little.

“You’ll see,” she said as she leaned back.

_Jewel kept walking around as she kicked that rock down the sidewalk, muttering to herself. She was itching for another fight. And it seemed someone was going to fulfill her wish. Her eyes narrowed as the person following her got closer. She turned and grabbed them by the shirt, only to see it was the kid who ran into her. His big brown eyes happily looked up at her as his blonde hair fell in his face a little._

_“Hi! I wanted to thank you for helping me out back there!”_

_She stared at this kid, confused. Hell, she couldn’t punch this! She let him go and rolled her eyes._

_“I didn’t do it for you. They insulted me and got what they deserved.”_

_“Still, it really helped me out,” he smiled at her. “Sorry you got kicked out over it that was stupid.”_

_“Fuck off and leave me alone,” she muttered, turning away and continued to walk down the street._

_But he didn’t. He continued to follow her. He kept smiling. “So… my name’s Matt! What’s yours?”_

_“None of your business,” she growled._

_“Oh come on!” he whined. “I just wanna thank you properly.”_

_She growled, turned and grabbed him by the shirt again, pulling him in within an inch of her face. “I said fuck off!” she barked, before throwing him down and ran down, turning a corner._

_Matt followed, trying to catch up, but she was gone. He looked around a little, trying to find her, but she wasn’t anywhere where he could find her. He eventually sighed and headed back to the carnival._

“That wasn’t very nice,” Blueberry commented.

“I wasn’t a nice person then, Blue.”

“Where did you go?” Error rose a brow. “That was some disappearing act. You couldn’t teleport then, could you?”

“Nope,” Jewel chuckled. “Look up in the tree.”

The group then looked up in a tree that Matt had run right under. She was hiding in the thick foliage, looking down.

Everyone started snickering. “Damn, he’s a little dense, isn’t he?” Sans laughed.

“Little bit,” Jewel chuckled. “But a persistent bastard. Kept running into him everywhere and had to pull similar stunts. He just wouldn’t leave me alone.”

“And you picked up those bad habits,” Error teased.

“Eh, you’re glad I did,” she said, squeezing his hand.

Ink smiled down at them. He had a bird’s eye view of their hand holding and it was adorable. He felt kind of bad for getting between them now like he was, but Error wasn’t making a move to get closer. Best not to push it. “I know I am,” Ink spoke up. “Wouldn’t be able to just sit and enjoy time like this, especially with Error. I actually feel like we’re friends like this, Glitchy!”

“Shut it, Squid,” Error muttered.

Dream chuckled softly. “It is quite amazing what can bring people together. Even other people.”

“Yeah, I doubt would’ve met Red without Jewel,” Sans grinned, elbowing his counterpart.

“Oh, lucky me, meetin’ a bunch of morons like all of you,” Red drawled, but he had a grin on.

Blueberry chuckled and curled into Jewel. “I’m glad we all got to meet!” he grinned, before he looked up at Error. “I missed hanging out with you, Error.”

Error glitched a little and he glared at Blueberry.

“We’re not friends,” he hissed.

“Come on, boys. Not right now,” Jewel interfered. “And you,” she said, running her knuckles against Blueberry’s skull for a moment, causing him to squirm, “Quit trying to be manipulative.”

“Ow, ow!” he whined, but gave a defeated smile. “Okay, sorry.”

Error stared at her then at Blueberry. The fuck was his game? But he felt a squeeze on his hand and he focused back on Jewel.

“C’mon, back to the story. Matt’s persistence is what helped me figure out my magic more.”

“Really?” Dream questioned.

“Well… just watch,” she said softly.

_Matt had finally gotten Jewel to open up a little. They were actually walking around together and she didn’t seem annoyed by him. However, they were walking in a rougher part of town, the sidewalk and the streets were all cracked and broken, houses were boarded up and vines, weeds and grass were overgrown in the yards around them._

_“So are you gonna stay for dinner tonight? You said your grandmother has your brother right?”_

_“Yeah, but dad’s picking me up from there, so you know how it goes.”_

_“Right, damn. I was hoping you’d stay, I got this new game I think you’d like.”_

_“Maybe another time. Games don’t go bad,” Jewel chuckled._

_“Yeah, guess not,” he grinned._

_Jewel suddenly stopped in her tracks and Matt jolted forward as he felt himself get caught by his shirt. He turned and looked at Jewel as her eyes narrowed._

_“What?” he blinked._

_“Someone’s around the corner with bad intent.”_

_Matt blinked, but slowly started to back up. “Uh, we can take another way,” he tried, but when he turned back to look for another way, he saw someone walking up with a gun drawn. “Uh, Mel?”_

_“I know. Just hush and stay down.”_

_“Y-you can’t be serious…” he muttered._

_“What are you doing in our turf?” a teenager snarled._

_“You’re not in gang colors, what are you? Few street thugs thinking you can go intimidating random kids? Need a gun for pre-teens?” Jewel taunted._

“Jewel, seriously?” Ink spoke up. “Didn’t you almost die the last time one of those was used?!”

“Never said I was a smart kid.”

_“Fucking cunt!” The leader, who had been the one talking, grabbed Jewel by the shirt and tried to pick her up. Instantly, her eyes gained the red hue, half her eyes filled with the color. Even though she got lifted up, she twisted the man’s arm and there was a crack._

_The rest started to move, but the cocking of the gun was the first thing that got Jewel’s attention. She moved and threw Matt over the stone wall into an overgrown yard before resuming the fight. She got grabbed by another man, all of them were late teens, some high school drop outs or close to it._

A gunshot rang out, and the skeletons tensed. Jewel however, just sat back and watched.

_Black smoke emitted from the wound on her shoulder, the bullet having gone straight through. Jewel growled, a faint black aura starting to form, fangs starting to show once again under her snarling lip._

_“Wanna duel then?” she growled. A spark flashed in front of her eyes and in a second, the hand on the gun was seared with black flame. The man screamed and dropped the gun, causing it to go off and fire randomly. The man shook out his hand, but the searing pain refused to stop._

_“You see this?” Jewel growled, a black ember live in her hand. The men around her started to back up. “This is literal hell fire,” she sneered, moving closer to them. “The burns you get from this will never, ever heal. You’ll be burning alive for all of eternity. Even in your next life you’ll have a mark from this flame, and the life after that. You get me? Now, how about I brand you for whatever gods you believe in?”_

_She literally summoned black fire and her eyes were turning red more than they were blue. Was it any wonder why they ran off? Jewel scoffed and muttered before putting a hand over her shoulder. Damn that hurt…_

_“Mel?”_

_She turned to see Matt standing there, fear in his eyes. Well, there went that. She grumbled and started to walk away before she felt something grab her hand. She turned and saw him looking at her, concern in those big brown eyes._

_“Are you… all right? What happened?? Why did you..? Why’d you fight?”_

_“They weren’t going to give us a choice, dumbass. Better to beat them first before something serious happens!”_

_“But you!” he looked to her shoulder, shaking as he saw the blood._

_“This ain’t shit,” she muttered. “I’ve had knife wounds that bled more,” she lied. It was true, she had worse, but not by much. She had only been shot one other time at that point._

_“You should go to a hospital!” Matt exclaimed._

_“No, I’m fine!” she barked back. “Just gotta go home and wrap it up.”_

_“How are you going to wrap up the giant gaping hole in your shoulder?!” he cried._

_“A lot of tape,” she muttered like it was the most obvious thing._

_“How… how much do you fight that this..?”_

_“Just… shut up,” Jewel muttered. “Now, I need to tend to this.”_

_“Wait, my house is closer. Mom’s a nurse, maybe…”_

_“Ugh fine, whatever, but you’re mom’s gonna call the cops, and that’s gonna be a whole thing. You wanna explain why I can conjure black flames? Cuz I sure as the fuck don’t!”_

_Matt was silent for a moment, before looking up at her. “Is it… true what you said? About the fire?”_

_“What that? Eh, honestly don’t know with most of it. I’m only twelve, like hell do I know if anyone’s going to be reincarnated with that bullshit? Who even knows if any of that religion bullshit is real.”_

_“Mel! You know my family and I are religious! I don’t care if you don’t believe but don’t belittle us for it!” he pouted._

_Jewel grumbled, and Matt sighed. “The first part was true though,” she muttered. “I don’t know if it’s literal hell fire or whatever, but the burns never do heal. One of my schoolmates found that out the hard way when she slammed my brother’s head into a metal pole,” she said as her eyes got dark at the memory, eyes blazing with a bit of black smoke._

_Matt watched her for a moment, before his eyes got big. “Oh my God!”_

_“Religious boy saying god’s name in vain now?” Jewel playfully scolded._

_“No! I… oh crud, I did! But oh my gosh! Do you know what this is??”_

_“What what is?”_

_“Your magic!”_

_Jewel stared at him, dumbfounded. “Dude, I’ve been dealing with this for almost five years, there’s no way you suddenly know the answer to what I’ve been looking for.”_

_“I think I have an idea though! Come on, we can talk while we patch you up!” he beamed._

_They made it back to his house in short time. Jewel growled and hissed as Matt messed with the bandages, pulling at the wound. “Dude, just put gauze on either side and tape it down, it doesn’t have to be fancy!” she barked._

_“I’m sorry!” he whined, having dropped it again. “Your shirt’s in the way, I can’t..”_

_“Ugh, fine.”_

_She ripped off her t-shirt, just revealing the sports bra underneath. Matt blushed deeply at the sudden boldness. He cleared his throat and tried to be mature about it, but he was a thirteen-year-old boy, damn it! Though he was distracted by the few scars already on her young body. He noticed a scar on her arm, the same one he was bandaging._

_“What happened here?” he asked, his hand grazing over it._

_Jewel pulled back from his touch. “Fucker pulled out a knife during a fist fight. Grandpa almost lost his shit when I started bleeding through the bandage,” she laughed a little._

_“I really hate that you keep getting into these fights, Mel… why do you do it? You know you can just run away, right? There’s no shame in it.”_

_“Fuck yeah there is! You run then those fuckers think they can mess with you! You gotta put ‘em in their place! Never let anyone see you as weak!”_

_“It’s… not weak to not fight. I mean, a lot of martial artists practice restraint, they don’t go looking for fights like you do. You purposely go into bad areas, you make yourself a target so people come to you so you can pretend like you don’t start shit, but you do, Mel! You worry me…”_

_“I can handle myself. Fuckers can’t use magic, I can. No one can touch me.”_

_“You just got shot!” Matt protested._

_“No big deal.”_

_He smacked the wound, causing her to shout in pain. She growled as she turned to face him, to see him standing there with tears in his eyes. Jewel hesitated a moment before turning back with a soft grunt. “So… you think you know what my magic is all of a sudden?” she muttered._

_Matt sighed. Of course she wasn’t going to just give up that easily. He got a new piece of gauze and put it against her back. Now that her shirt was gone it was easier… but he had to really try to ignore the fact she was in a bra right now._

_“Well, yeah. I noticed back there… the angrier you got, the more black smoke emitted from you… especially around the eyes. So… I think your emotions can help fuel your power. But, what kind of magic do you use when you’re happy?”_

_Jewel rose a brow, turning back to him. “This kind? It’s the only kind I got.”_

_Matt stared at her. “Can you use it when you’re happy?”_

_“Why would I? No one needs to be beat down if I’m happy.”_

_“Have you ever heard about the Two Wolves?” Matt then asked._

_“No?” she questioned._

_“So, there’s this story, I don’t exactly know how it goes. But the gist of it is, there are two wolves that are always fighting in an eternal struggle. One is darkness and despair while the other is light and hope. Do you know which one wins?”_

_“Darkness, duh, there’s more of that in the world.”_

_Matt sighed. “The one you **feed** Mel! And every person has that pair of wolves inside of us. And you’re definitely feeding your dark wolf, that’s for sure. I bet your poor light wolf is starving,” he chided._

_“More of your religious nonsense?” she muttered_

_He smacked her upside the head. “I’m Catholic, damn it, but this is something that my grandfather believed in! He was the last one to be born on tribal land, you know that!”_

_Jewel muttered and rubbed the back of her head where he hit her. “What do I care about some native legend?”_

_“Because I think it applies to you, Mel! You get fangs when your powers activate, you have a literal black fire, it sounds like the Death Wolf!”_

_Jewel turned back to him with a raised brow. “Death wolf? I thought you said my whole thing was the two wolves?”_

_“They’re connected, some say. See, you know how natives generally revere the wolf, right?”_

_“Well, duh, it’s everywhere in media. Wolf is a special spirit, blah blah.”_

_“Well, there was this one tribe that thought different. See, there was a meeting among the stars to decide how our world would be made. They decided which animals lived where, what they needed, where mountains and streams would go, that kind of thing. The Wolf Star was insulted and enraged that it wasn’t invited to the council, went down as a wolf to steal a bag that every other creature was pulled out of. The wolf dropped the bag, releasing humans to it. Humans then turned and killed the wolf, creating death in our world. And ever since, we’ve had our live cycles.”_

_Jewel listened, before laughing. “So you’re saying I fucked up the world, huh?”_

_“Not you,” he rolled his eyes. “But, when the Wolf Star was killed, its spirit didn’t rest. It was celestial, after all. It would possess wolves to cause trouble, to get revenge on the humans whom it had accidentally released. The Death Wolf was what it was known to be called. You know about totems, right? Spirit animals?”_

_“The vague concept, yeah.”_

_“See, the Death Wolf would come and gift its power to those born under the false Wolf Star. Either you were born under it, or your dark wolf was.”_

_“Wait, what?” she rose a brow._

_“Spirits live within everything, even other souls,” he laughed. “The two wolves inside each of us are generally other souls, who are supposed to be guiding us. They fight for dominance to see who will win in the eternal struggle of good versus evil.”_

_“God, this religion shit is messed up.”_

_Matt chuckled a little. “Hey, you never know! You got some crazy power, and it fits!”_

_“Humans have magic, it’s just not as common. I mean, hell, you remember the Witch Trials from school, right?”_

_“Yeah, but they were just mistakes.”_

_“Maybe the majority of them, but humans can still use magic. I just happen to be good at dark magic.”_

_“Please, don’t say that,” Matt pleaded. “You’re a good person, Mel! You just got dealt a bad hand! I know you can turn your life around, you don’t have to be so angry all the time. Come on,” he offered her his hand. “I’ll let you borrow one of my shirts and I can show you that new game before you go home!”_

_“Ugh, fine,” she muttered a little, taking his hand._

“I like Matt,” Blueberry spoke up. “He believed in you.”

“Well, not me, but he believed that I could be a good person. We didn’t know each other that long,” Jewel explained.

“How long did you know each other there?” Dream asked.

“Oh boy. Well, we met in April, so… that happened during summer break, so July-ish?” she questioned. “So about three months at this point. He was my only friend at that point, but we didn’t last too long.”

“Why?” Sans questioned carefully.

“Guess you should see when I really lost it,” she muttered softly.

_Jewel stood there in a dress looking uncomfortable. Why had she agreed to this? It was long, past mid-calf, but she still hated it. She felt so exposed! She squirmed as she shivered as they walked down the snow-covered street._

_“Come on, you look great!” Matt grinned_

_“Fucking hate dresses,” she muttered._

_“You’re the one who wanted to wear it.”_

_“And now I’m regretting it, shut up.”_

_Matt chuckled, smiling warmly at her. “All right, all right. But just watch the potty-mouth when we get to my church, okay? You know how some of the older folks can get, especially in religious institutions.”_

_“Yeah, yeah. So long as they don’t piss me off. Don’t want them trying to convert me.”_

_“Well, you were already baptized and everything in the Catholic church, right? They can’t really do anything except pray and recite scripture, which they won’t unless you act out or they’re wishing you well. It’s not a bad thing, ya know.”_

_Jewel muttered a little as they walked._

_“Ya know, I wish you’d tell me why you don’t believe in God anymore. I can tell it’s sensitive but…” he rubbed the back of his neck. “I know I can’t change your mind or anything, I just… wish you’d tell me.”_

_Jewel’s eyes darkened at that. “Hell of a thing to ask on the way to a Christmas party,” she muttered._

_Matt hesitated a moment. He realized he put his foot in his mouth. “Sorry, I know… I’m stupid. But… hey, ya know Santa’s going to be there right? Maybe you can ask him for something,” he teased._

_“Oh fuck you!” she shoved him and he laughed. She couldn’t help but smile a little at him too._

_They continued to walk and Jewel continued to shiver. “Fucking hate winter,” she muttered._

_Matt pulled her to the side and tried to warm up her hands. She was really freezing, neither of them wore gloves or even more than their winter coats. But he saw a gas station just around the corner. “Wait for me here, okay? I’ll go get us some hot chocolate,” he grinned before bolting across the street._

_Jewel blinked. It was a seedy spot, she supposed it would be weird to walk in together. It was just a tiny little store section anyway. She stood there, shivering, breathing on her hands to try and warm them up. Hell of a thing to do when she could literally summon fire when angry… but she couldn’t even do that right now. Her powers were annoying…_

_She felt this tingle in the back of her mind. Bad feelings… they always appeared at the worst times. But they were going to a church… nothing could happen right? She looked up and saw Matt starting to come out of the gas station holding two cups. She smiled a little. Right, nothing was going to happen. She was just a bundle of nerves. She was in a dress, it was cold, going to a church. Nothing was going to happen…_

_As she got ready to cross the street to meet him, a car skidded through, hopping the sidewalk and completely mowed down Matt, the drinks flying from his hand as he bounced and rolled off the car before it crashed into a fire hydrant, causing an eruption of water. In a second, Jewel ran straight over, going to where he crashed down. He had blood all over his face and one of his arms was just limp, broken in several places. He wheezed as she slowly picked him up._

_“M-Matt…” Tears began to flow. “H-hang on, okay? I’ll get help!”_

_“M-Mel…” he managed to mutter out. “S’okay… don’t… don’t let… this d-drag you down… okay?” he tried. Blood just poured from his mouth more._

_Jewel held him, but she heard car doors open. The driver was finally getting out after crashing the car? But that’s when her blood ran cold. Two familiar faces popped out. No, she… hadn’t seen them in months! It…!_

_“Mel…” he gargled his words, “Run… run…” he slowly closed his eyes, “run…”_

_Matt went limp in her arms and when she looked back up, she didn’t see them anymore. Where did they go? She felt her arm grabbed and she yelped, looking back. Her eyes were wide and for the first time since, her fearless façade was gone. She was scared, and it showed. She struggled as they held her arms tightly._

_“We told you, pet,” the taller one hissed, “You can’t play with anyone but us. Look at you, getting all dolled up for someone else? I don’t think so.”_

_Hands snaked their way around her, grabbing her backside and going the inner parts of her thigh. That was it, she was done! Her eyes flashed red and she kicked one hard in the leg, making him limp and then she managed to free an arm and slug the other one. She wasn’t in any shape to fight right now. She listened and ran. She ran as fast as she could with the two on her heels. Stupid dress! Why did she think to wear this? She hated dresses for this reason! So vulnerable!_

_The sound of sirens wailed. Someone from the gas station must have called it in. The two men turned and ran in another direction and Jewel disappeared down an alleyway. She should have gone back but… she just… couldn’t bring herself to. What was she going to say?_


	29. Storytime: History part 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **Author’s Note: Chapters 26-29 are explanations of Jewel’s past and powers. Chapter 27-29 contain some sensitive material for certain viewers. There are no graphic scenes, but they are alluded to. Trigger warnings include child abuse, child rape, murder and suicide. These chapters are not necessary but they do go into detail about certain events and how they shaped her life. It is still a T-rated fic, just a warning to those who prefer to avoid such topics. All the flashbacks are in italics so if you want to read the summaries and questions from the characters, you can. Thank you.**

# Chapter 29 – Storytime: History part 3

Eyelights were out among the skeletons. Error gripped Jewel’s hand tightly. “That was _not_ your fault,” he managed to growl out.

“Really?” Jewel questioned, “If I didn’t let him in, it wouldn’t have happened,” she sighed, leaning back more.

Ink put his hand on her head. “I’m with Error, that was hardly your fault.”

“You’re allowed to have friends,” Blueberry chimed in, still holding her.

“If these fuckers don’t get their comeuppance…” Red muttered.

Dream honestly didn’t know what to say. He could see her point of view. He always felt like he pulled Nightmare into worlds he visited, it was his fault that he couldn’t save them… who was he to say otherwise? The fact was Jewel was right, but so were the others. There were a million ways to look at this scenario, and there was no real point to argue it.

“Jewel, you were a _kid_. Magic or not, that’s fucked up, you can’t blame yourself for that!”

“I don’t blame myself, not anymore,” Jewel said softly, though it was clear the memory still bothered her a bit. “They did it, that was it. But it still happened because of me. Matt wouldn’t have been put in the line of fire if I kept myself at a distance like I was supposed to in their weird, fucked up game. If I had better control of my magic at the time…”

“You had magic for five years with no one to help you. It was amazing you could do any of that before,” Sans praised.

“But… what happened?” Blueberry asked. “With the police? Did they get caught this time?”

“No. Stolen car, gloves, no prints… I burned that dress and the coat,” Jewel said softly.

“So, weird question,” Red piped up. “What do humans do for their dead? I mean, it was… he didn’t dust or nothin’.”

“Yeah, ya know… as many times as I kill Frisk, with the resets, I never thought about that. I know the souls persist, but…” Sans thought about it.

“Oh you two are morbid,” Jewel teased.

“Humans don’t dust,” Error rolled his eyes.

“Dude, you steal their souls,” Ink pointed out. “Have you ever actually killed one?”

“Humans need their soul as much as monsters do,” Jewel explained. “Except maybe you, Ink,” she teased. “Technically we can live without a lot of stuff, souls included, provided medical intervention is given. We would be in comas, unable to communicate. Our senses could still theoretically retain everything, but our conscious mind is split between our bodies and souls so… it’d be weird and highly dependent on the circumstances. But as for what we do with our dead… that varies depending on religion and culture. Some bury the bodies in the ground, either in shrouds or coffins, where the body will decompose over time. What lasts longest is the skeleton, actually, but even that can decay and turn to dust eventually. Others just kind of… just speed up the process and burn the remains and turn us to ash. Then the ashes are kept in an urn or spread about, depending on the person’s wishes. Humans have a variety of different rituals. It’s mostly left up to the individual. But in the end, we do technically dust, it just takes a lot of time or intervention.”

“So, for Matt?” Dream questioned. “He mentioned… catholic? And you are too?”

“Heh, that’s a story for another day. But for Matt… well, I honestly don’t know. I wasn’t allowed to attend his funeral.”

“Why not?” Ink blinked. “You were his friend!”

Jewel sighed and motioned Error to not play this one. “His mom and brother blamed me for his death. Apparently, he mentioned me being related to the Death Wolf and despite them not believing in that stuff, his mother bought into it in her grief. I went by to try and offer condolences. I was still pretty messed up by the whole thing and… I hated the fact I hid instead of told her. The police had to try and identify him and came knocking on her door. I could have…” she shook her head a little. “The two of them blamed me as I stood there, unable to really argue… she told me she sent Matt’s body back to her family’s old tribal land to be buried and I was never allowed there… then she and Matt’s older brother told me I had two more deaths on my hands. They had taken Matt’s father’s old guns and killed themselves in front of me.”

Silence overtook them all. What the hell could they say to that? Well, Red had an idea…

“That’s fucked up,” he muttered.

“Yeah, well…” Jewel sighed a little. She took advantage of the fact Blueberry was there and squeezed him a little, along with Error’s hand.

“So… how accurate was Matt’s theory on your magic? It sounded similar to what you explained before,” Dream questioned.

“Not quite accurate, but it helped give me some research materials. And after that I went through… well…”

“What?” Sans asked worriedly.

Jewel sighed a little. “That was probably the biggest period of depression. I gave up on a lot. I went from straight A’s in school to barely passing in ninth grade and failing half my 10 grade year. I just didn’t care anymore. I focused more on my magic than anything. I was so angry I couldn’t just… use it that day. Matt was right, I could only access it when I was angry, and I was more scared than angry at the time so I couldn’t…” She shook her head a little. “So I started doing what I could to be able to summon it on command… including using other people’s emotions to trigger it. That’s when I realized how easily influence-able I was with people around me. My brother was happy, so I’d perk up almost instantly, which, I suppose was okay, but it was really annoying when I was dragged to places I didn’t want to go. My grandfather had died before what happened with Matt, and I started to realize what happens to empaths when in groups of large people with a powerful emotion. Death never bothered me, and he died in his sleep. He was old and it was just his time. Yeah, I missed him but I wasn’t going to just start bawling over it. Pissed my mom off, but the feeling in the room was just… I had to leave, which only made the situation worse with her, I think.”

“You said you… cut yourself off before,” Dream mentioned, everyone turning and looking confused.

“That was still afterward, when I… learned something after another event.”

“Which was?” Ink questioned.

She laughed a little. “Well…” She thought about telling them. But… She squeezed Error’s hand, and he nodded. He started syncing up the timeline as she continued. “This was about a year and a half after what happened with Matt. So I was fourteen going on fifteen.”

_Jewel was walking around the trailer park, headphones on, music blaring from a CD player stuffed in an inner pocket of her light jacket. As she turned the corner, her eyes narrowed at a girl obviously a bit younger than her. She was chubby, but she had a serious bitch-like face just constantly. She was walking with another girl, about as short as she was, but she was dressed pretty provocatively. Low-cut tank top that revealed far too much cleavage, short-shorts and heels. Jewel rolled her eyes as she ignored them. She lowered her music, however. She could hear the chubby girl talking smack about her, as per usual._

_“And stay away from that one, she’s an utter freak!” she said._

_In all honesty, it was probably true. She wasn’t the nicest person around, but she wasn’t the worst either. Not as far as school was concerned. She kept those lives pretty separate at this point._

_But what surprised her was the second those words were uttered, the girl in the tank-top stopped and went right over to her. Jewel blinked and pulled down her headphones as the girl clearly started talking._

_“Hi!” she repeated again. “My name’s Lisa, but everyone calls me Cat! What’s your name?” she asked in this high-pitched, almost too chipper of a voice._

_Jewel scanned those big brown eyes of hers, wary. “Uh… Melissa,” she muttered._

_“Hm,” she pondered. “I don’t like that!” she then declared._

_Well, fuck you, ran through Jewel’s mind._

_“From now on, your name is…” she put a finger to her chin, thinking. “Jewel!” she grinned before grabbing her arm and wrapping her own around them. “Come on! Let’s go do something! I’m new around here, maybe you can show me around!”_

_“Hey, I was doing that!” the chubbier girl growled. “I told you to stay away from that fucking freak! She’ll climb through your window and murder you!”_

_“No, just you,” Jewel quipped back and flipped her off. She started to walk off, but she had this new thing attached to her arm._

_“Oh, nice. So you are a bad girl~” she teased._

_Oh great, not another one! “Listen, I’ma tell you this once. I don’t do friends,” Jewel snarled._

_“Well, too bad! We’re buddies now, Jewel!”_

_“Ugh, that’s not my name! It doesn’t even make sense!”_

_“Well, too bad~” she grinned. “Now, where are we going?”_

_“I’m going home, you can go wherever.”_

_“Well, I’m going with you!” she grinned._

_“Never said you could,” she growled._

_“Too bad~ I’m here to stay!” she smiled up at her. “C’mon, you know you love me~!”_

_“I barely know you. You’re lucky you’re not part of the pavement right now.”_

_“Ooh, yay! I could use a body guard~ And you’ll do much better than that other bitch!” she smiled._

_“Fucking manipulative, aren’t you? What, do you bat those puppy eyes around everywhere and everyone just listens because you’re a tiny girl with big boobs?”_

_She blinked, looking up at her with those eyes, but as she stared her down she burst out laughing. “Damn! You’re good!”_

_“And you’re not.”_

_The two then started laughing and Cat shoved Jewel lightly. “Oh, I do like you! Now, really, can you show me around? That bitch was just talking smack! I need to know where I can get some shit!” she grinned._

_“Fine, just let grab some cash in case something catches my eye,” she said and they headed back home. As they approached the trailer, Jewel’s little brother, ten at this point, was getting on his bike outside. “Yo, Bo!”_

_“Oh, hi sis!” he smiled._

_“Did mom say it was okay?” she asked._

_“Uh, dad did,” he hesitantly replied._

_Jewel blinked and looked around. His car wasn’t nearby… that meant he parked by the office and had to walk. Oh, he was pissed then. Great… “Okay, thanks for the heads up. Just stay around the one stretch, okay?”_

_“Okay,” he grinned and started to pedal off._

_“Dad issues, huh?”_

_“Yup, not getting that money. He’s in a mood if has to park near the office, lazy fucker,” she muttered._

_“S’okay, I gotchu!” Cat grinned and they started to walk off._

Blueberry couldn’t help but snicker and everyone turned to him. Jewel was laughing a little with him too as she stroked his head. “So it’s not just your brother I remind you of, huh?”

“Yeah, nah, apparently not,” Jewel chuckled a little. “I honestly forgot that part, wow.”

“People seem to cling to you,” Blueberry smiled.

“Power does that,” Error muttered. “Weaker people always cling to those who are stronger.”

“Well, you’re not wrong,” Jewel agreed. “But in Cat’s case, it was more the abusive dad thing that we bonded over. And she really did need protection, she attracted trouble like no one’s business,” she muttered. “And I probably didn’t help with that.”

“Oh fuck, seriously??” Red growled.

“Jewel… they didn’t…” Sans paled. Jewel simply motioned to the screen.

_It had been about a week since they met. Jewel was showing Cat the corner store now that Cat had some money again. She looked around, and tried to slip some candy in her pocket. Jewel rose a brow and grabbed her hand, causing Cat to jump. She paled a little under her makeup. She forgot how eagle-eyed Jewel was, and this was never brought up before._

_“Girl, your pants are too damn tight, what are you doing?” she muttered a little. “You wanna steal like that you gotta wear something a little less form fitting.”_

_Cat blinked a little._

_Jewel simply chuckled. “Let the master show you how it’s done,” she smirked._

_Jewel would go around and slip things up sleeves, even in pockets, nothing obvious. She was so casual about it, if you weren’t paying attention it seemed like she just looked at something and put it back. Then she went and paid for one thing with Cat before leaving. Once they were outside, having gotten a bag for the few items they did legitimately buy, she slipped the rest into the bag out of her sleeves and pockets._

_“Damn!” Cat grinned. “You gotta show me how to do that!”_

_“Then you gotta start wearing things with pockets and sleeves.”_

_“Fine~ But I gotta make it cute,” she protested._

_“That’s fine, but you don’t need skin-tight shit to be cute,” Jewel muttered as she bit into her candy bar._

_“Says you. We need to take you shopping one of these days,” she said. “Get you some cute dresses—”_

_“No,” Jewel shot that down in less than a second._

_“Fine~” Cat whined, but opened up her candy bar and continued to walk._

_As they approached the trailer park again Cat didn’t even bother to look in the street. Jewel didn’t need to as she simply went and grabbed the other female before yanking her back, just barely being missed by a brown station wagon style car who started to speed up. When Jewel looked up, however, a familiar face flashed passed in the driver’s seat._

_“Crazy bastard!” Cat shouted at the car before starting to go across the street again. But she stopped when she realized she wasn’t being followed. “Jewel?”_

_It was weird to see her face so pale. She stared as they drove past. They knew where she lived, she knew that… at least the area… they had harassed her before… but already? She had barely started to know this girl and already??_

_“Yo, earth to Jewel?” Cat waved her hand in front of her face._

_“The fuck was that?!” Jewel then barked, “You don’t just randomly run in the street! You almost got hit!”_

_“Not the first time,” she casually lulled. “I don’t really watch where I’m going.”_

_“No shit,” Jewel muttered. “I… I gotta go home.”_

_“Oh, let me come over!”_

_“No, I… I need to be alone. I’ll call you later, okay?” she said as she handed her the bag of candy she had pilfered. She wasn’t in the mood anymore._

_Jewel crossed the street and went back to her home. When she got there, she noticed her brother crying on the couch with her father looking angry._

_“And where the fuck were you?!” he barked at her._

_“I was with Cat, like I told you I was going to be.”_

_“You were supposed to stay nearby in the park!”_

_“I just went the corner store with her, she wanted a candy bar. I wasn’t far.”_

_“Too damn far! Because of you your brother almost got hit by a car!”_

_Jewel’s face paled and she ran over to her brother, ignoring her father’s ranting and just looked him over. He had a scrapped knee and a small scuff on his face. He looked more scared than anything._

_“Bo, what happened?” she asked, gently wiping his tears from his face._

_“I-I was riding around, the normal loop like always. Th-then this car just… I dropped my bike and hopped to the curb. I tripped and fell, and they ran over my tire and left…”_

_“What did the car look like?”_

_“I-it was brown, l-like dad’s car… but lighter…”_

_Like dad’s? A station wagon? She paled as the implications hit her like a truck. They had just left the scene from trying to run her brother over and almost hit Cat! It wasn’t intention for her… but her brother was! She started to shake but she felt small hands on her arm. She looked down at her brother with his big blue eyes._

_“Sis… a-are you okay?”_

_“Just worried about you little bro. I’m so sorry I wasn’t there,” she said as she sat down beside him, holding him tightly._

_Her father was about to say something, but her eyes flashed red at him, and even he knew when to back off when she got like that. It had been an ever escalating thing with him… Jewel then turned and focused on her little brother for the rest of the day._

_That night, however, after her brother was asleep, Jewel laid atop of the bunk bed with the light on as per usual. Stupid little clown lamp he loved so much… She slid down the ladder and quietly threw on some normal clothes over her pajamas and headed out. Her father was snoring away on the couch and she just silently left. She needed a walk, she needed to clear her head. She had pushed the rage down for the sake of her little brother but it just kept building. They went after her little brother! After she spent all these years silent!_

_She walked, and walked, rage just building with every step until she heard something familiar._

_“Damn it, why are we walking?”_

_“Because that damn bike did a number to the suspension remember? Cracked a tie-rod. Gonna get it fixed tomorrow.”_

_The mother fuckers were there and complaining about her brother’s bike breaking their car when they tried to run him down? Oh that was it! Her eyes turned red, for the first time, there was no blue left in them. They were pure blood red. Each step seemed to emanate black smoke as she continued to get closer. They were simply laughing until the felt the malice surround them. Slowly, they turned._

_“Oh, look who it is, our little toy,” one smirked._

_“Come to say hello to your owners?” the other taunted._

_“Did you get our message today, pet? We’re getting quite annoyed at your lack of attention to the rules, so we’re adding new ones, and harsher punishments for when you break them.”_

_“Oh, I’ll **break**_ _something all right,” she growled._

_The taller of the two pulled out a gun, pointing it directly at her. “Can’t say this hasn’t been fun. But if you are so eager to die, we’ll gladly find a new toy to play with. Finish what we should have years ago. Then, we’ll go put your brother out of his misery. Stupid boy.”_

_Black smoke started to hiss from her frame, causing the men to stare at her with something other than that predatory smile for the first time. The smoke started to twist and twirl around her body, coating it in shadow. The man fired his weapon but it didn’t seem to faze her. The black smoke seemed to flicker like small flames before she rushed at them._

Jewel covered Blueberry’s eyes as the men were literally torn asunder. The horrifying screams were enough for the smaller Sans to twist into her and hide his face in her shirt and she continued to shield him. Once it was all over, there was nothing but a pile of ash that started to blow away in the wind. Silence reined over the group again.

“Bout fucking time!” Red broke the silence. “Fuckers got what they deserved!”

“Hate to say it, but even I can’t argue that,” Sans said softly. “I mean, I do it to, during the genocide runs. But that was… wow, brutal…” Sans had lost some of the color in his bones from that scene. He thought what he did with the kid was harsh…

“That… reminds me more of Nightmare than I’m comfortable with,” Dream spoke up, looking over to Jewel. “You said you…”

“Well, remember, Fenrir’s power is focused in negativity too,” she told him. “And… yeah, I was feeling pretty dark and negative right there. Rage, self-loathing… I’m not going to lie, I wanted to rip them apart… and I did. And it felt… good,” she looked down at Blueberry who turned to look up at her with worried eyes. “I finally broke free. They weren’t going to hurt me or my brother anymore. I wasn’t in danger of losing anyone else to those assholes. I finally wasn’t the prey anymore, I was a predator. I could tear apart anyone I wanted. And… that’s what became of my life at that point.”

“Wait you…”Ink blinked.

“I told you I was like Error,” she reminded. “Heh, Cat even got pulled along for the ride for a bit. I was a horrible influence. She got to learn about my magic. We mostly stuck to petty thievery but as we got older, I started getting bolder. She found a boyfriend who didn’t like me and as I started doing more dangerous stuff, I couldn’t really argue with him. I had tried to pull back but Cat was stubborn. It wasn’t until he started voicing concerns did she start turning her life around. I actually liked the guy, he was good for her. Protective in a good way. So we eventually drifted apart and I went full on criminal life. I robbed banks, I killed people… got bored of doing it on my own and got a small gang together. Didn’t really care about them, but…”

“You really are sounding too much like Nightmare,” Dream paled.

“But… you’re not like that now,” Blueberry interrupted. “What made you decide to change?”

“My brother was killed,” she said softly. “I was twenty-five, he was twenty-one. After that, I just… lost it. He hated me at that point so I wasn’t around much, but he was still the one thing I gave a damn about. What was the point of all the power I had if I couldn’t protect the only person that mattered to me? I lost control, and apparently I broke through the walls of my world, shattering it and opening up the code. I fell through and I disappeared from my world. I woke up in this black void of nothing and just… well, freaked out. I was trapped, my brother just died and I… well, I broke. I cried years’ worth of tears and frustrations out before I just… slept until I couldn’t do that anymore. I cut… a lot and just… well, willing yourself to die in a place without even time-flow is kind of hard. But it also gives you a lot of time to reflect on your choices in life. At first, I didn’t think much of it, but I started to regret what I had done. All the people I killed that didn’t deserve it. Still don’t regret killing those two assholes—”

“Ya shouldn’t,” Red agreed, wholeheartedly.

“But the people at the banks, the officers who I killed trying to stop me… all the people I traumatized… Heh, probably why they turned on me again when I went back.”

“Wait, you went back?” Sans asked.

“Yeah. Eventually I figured out how the code went. The powers that came with it after being exposed for so long. That’s where I got the teleporting. I couldn’t do that before. It’s just a quick shift in the code, I can teleport between points easily. Having a near photographic memory helps. That’s why I just have to be somewhere once and I can go back.”

“So, what happened when you went back?” Ink asked.

“I was homeless for a while. Old skills came in handy, had to pickpocket some basic money unless I wanted to whore myself out for enough to try and get a job. Slept under a bridge, found a cat who liked me. Eventually got enough money between working and stealing to get an apartment to try and just go straight from there. I honestly tried to be a better person. Started going by Jewel at that point since it was the only other name I had. My old one was too attached to what I had done before. Hell, it was still around in media. They called us the Magic Mafia if you can believe that,” she laughed a little. “Should have charged royalties but then I would be outing myself. But I did that on my own.”

“What happened?” Dream questioned carefully.

“Eh, it had been six years. Pretty easy going life. But as I was walking around doing errands, I came upon a bank robbery about to go down. I couldn’t help myself, that used to be my whole life. I didn’t even bank there, I just… was curious about it, honestly. But someone, a mother with her infant, was shot during it all because she tried to quiet her baby. Babies always make robbers nervous, it’s stupid. They kid’s not going to do anything! I should know,” she muttered, holding her head. “I reacted. During my time in the code, I learned a lot about my powers and learned about my white magic. I used it, I couldn’t help it. I put a barrier around the robbers to keep them from shooting and ran over to the mother and started healing. People utterly freaked out. I suppose I could understand but… damn it, I was literally healing the mother’s wounds, if you spent two seconds looking you’d notice the wound was getting smaller. But no, some dude comes and literally stabs me with a knife in the back. It went so deep, it punctured my scapula and I still have the knife tip wedged in the bone. Obviously, I threw the guy off and they all turned on me. Cops got there and guns were pointed directly at me. Forget the people that just tried to rob the bank, somehow I was priority. Guns pointed at me again, I just fled. I teleported out and went back to my apartment.”

“Shouldn’t you have just explained yourself? Running probably looked worse,” Sans pointed out.

“Probably did, but I had just literally been stabbed in the back with guns in my face. I was trying not to start something.”

“You know, if this is hard, I could have just pulled it up,” Error offered.

“And why? Literally, you’d just see this one bit before the cops come busting into my house, stomping my cat to death because of stupid witch lore and beating me with clubs before I reverted back to what I used to be and killed them all,” she said darkly.

“Jewel…” Blueberry tried, but she didn’t acknowledge him.

“I ran back into the code after that. This first time it was over a hundred years… I don’t know how long the second time was, but it felt like it was at least double the first stay, so… I dunno. I kept myself locked up until that day we met in UnderSwap. That was some fluke chance if there ever was one, not that I regret it.” She finally looked down at Blueberry who had some unshed tears lining his eyes, and gently wiped them from him. “I’m… actually pretty happy now with all of you. I know I haven’t been fair and bringing my walls down hasn’t been the easiest for all of you but… there it is. All the crap that led up to this point, minus a couple of unimportant details. And I understand if you don’t want to be around me anymore.”

“Why the hell would you think that, Jewel?” Ink suddenly spoke up. He hopped down and looked right at her. “No one’s perfect and you got dealt a pretty crappy hand, but you’re hardly any worse than this bozo,” he pointed to Error, who huffed. “And I’m still trying to convince him to be friends with me. You really think I’m going to abandon you now? No way! I finally got to learn more about you! You finally opened up! I’ll probably forget over half this stuff, but I know I’ll never forget seeing your face light up with your grandfather gave you that art kit! I’m so excited to try and create with you! Don’t care what you say, Error!” Ink challenged.

Sans chuckled a little. “Jewel, I know I gave ya a hard time, but… Ink’s right, this isn’t going to change anything, at least with me. I get why you were so angry now, and I wished you would have opened up to me beforehand, but I’m glad you did now. I’ll admit, it’s going to take me a while to comprehend everything. I mean, you did just drop a _skele-ton_ of info on us, but _tibia_ honest, I think I can roll with it, no _fibula._ ”

Blueberry groaned a little, but Jewel chuckled so he let it slide. No shouting this time. Blueberry stood up finally, looking down at the human he had been cuddling this whole time. “Jewel, I told you before, I, THE MAGNIFICENT SANS, believe in you. You’ve already proven that you can change. You’re not that person anymore. You openly admitted you hate using that power now. And I’m proud of you! And I’ll always be your friend, no matter what!”

“Ya still a corny little bastard, ain’tcha?” Red said as he stood up, walking over and putting a hand on Jewel’s shoulder. “Sweetheart, yer exactly like me. Can’t hate ‘cha ‘cuz I’m pretty amazin’ if I do say so myself,” he chuckled. “Though ya got more of a sweet side than I do, and it just makes ya all the better. I ain’t gonna leave ya hanging.”

Error squeezed her hand, having never let her go through that entire thing. “I already told you my piece.” He was never leaving her, no matter what. And that? That was nothing. He was horrified by what he learned in her early years, but her later life? That was nothing. There was nothing she could do that would be worse than what he did.

Dream was the one with the conflict. She was very much like his brother… He barely knew her, and she was this open with him… he felt her soul, felt her positivity… but he couldn’t feel what his brother had. Logically, he shouldn’t trust her. She was like Nightmare… but she fought him to protect Blueberry, she had been honest with him throughout, didn’t hide anything, just asked to keep it for when she told everyone.

“Dream?” Blueberry spoke up.

He glanced over to her as he looked into those blue eyes. He could feel his soul swell. But Blueberry was right. She was different than that person. Everyone had their struggles. He shouldn’t trust her… but… deep in him, he wanted to get to know her more. He got up and walked over to Jewel, his golden eyes looking into her blue ones.

“All day, you’ve reminded me so much of my brother… and I think it’s clear why. You two had such a similar struggle… but you do seem to have changed since then. And maybe… that means there’s hope for my brother.” He held out a hand to her. “I don’t know… what to feel yet. We barely know each other. But I would like to get to know who you are now, Jewel.”

Jewel reached out and took his hand, before pulling him in and giving him a hug as she sat on the edge of the couch. Dream’s wide eyes softened as he couldn’t help but smile as he hugged her back. He didn’t know what to feel about what he had just learned. But right now… this felt right.


	30. Shattered

# Chapter 30 – Shattered

Error was ecstatic that Jewel was back, safe, and more than that, done with explaining everything to everyone. He’d be lying if he said he understood it all, or why she had to do all of that… but it seemed to help her in some way. She slept a lot, but when she was awake she seemed… better. Like there was less on her shoulders and she was more open with him. She was smiling more, and it was a genuine thing. He… liked it.

However, today, while they were sitting in those recliners she had gotten him so accustomed to watching Undernovela, she seemed a little… distracted. He tried to ignore it. She would tell him if she wanted to, right? But she kept glancing at him then looking away. When things got quiet, she seemed to do this more since she got back. And it was slowly eating away at him. She didn’t say anything and now they couldn’t even sit and watch their show together? Granted, the language barrier made it harder to get everything, but still!

“Okay, why are you fidgeting?” he finally broke down. He wouldn’t call her out completely but, he had to ask something. It was starting to get to him!

“Sorry,” she muttered a little.

Oh great, did he upset her? “Jewel, I didn’t mean anything by it,” he quickly defended himself.

“I know,” she said softly.

“Then what’s got you all riled up?”

Jewel sweated a little. “It’s kind of stupid.”

“Is this about the sketchbook thing?” Error asked.

Jewel blinked. “Huh?”

“Ink mentioned that… you haven’t gotten a new one because of me. Look, it's fine, I’m not going to stop you. You always seem to have something in your hands to fidget with.”

“Well, no, but thanks for that. I’ve kind of been missing it,” she admitted.

Error blinked a little. “So… what is bothering you then?”

“Well,” she rubbed her ear a little with her thumb. “I have this thing I’ve been working on… and I don’t feel like it’s done. And… well… I wanted to ask you for some of your string to use on it.”

Error rose a brow. “That’s all? You know I’d let you. How much do you need?”

“I’m not sure.”

“Well, I don’t mind if you just thread it like I do when I crotchet,” he offered.

“I appreciate that… but uh…”

He noticed her nervous energy. “What?”

“Um… you can’t see it until I’m done though.”

He blinked. “Why?”

“Because.”

Oh great, she was going back to this. He relented with a sigh. “Fine, whatever you gotta do. I don’t like seeing you worked up like this.” He started pulling a single string from the corner of his eye and passed it to her.

Jewel carefully took the string so she wasn’t bumping his hand. She was also afraid to pull, but as he leaned back in the chair, she felt how easily the string glided out of his eye. It still made her shiver internally, just imagining that feeling but it was probably different for him, being a skeleton and all.

“It… doesn’t bother you?” She had to ask.

Error chuckled a little. “Just don’t pull hard. It’s made of my magic after all.”

“It just makes me cringe a little to see it. I can’t imagine anything being pulled out of my eyes like that,” she shivered.

“Well, I’ll admit,” he started thinking back. “When I first did this, I yanked a bunch out at once, and it hurt like hell. I think I even bled a little, not that you could really tell.”

“Yikes,” Jewel blinked a little. “Why did you..?”

“Eh, I was in a state. I went to an AU and didn’t realize it. I thought I was talking with my…” he then realized what he was doing, and started silencing himself.

“Error?”

“I just… don’t like talking about it.”

“Oh, sorry.”

He looked over at her as she suddenly dropped it. Just like that. After everyone pushing her to share, how she laid everything out in her history, all those horrible things that happened to her… Even he asked about her past, but not once had she asked him. He suddenly felt conflicted. He was so easily going to tell her before he stopped himself. He didn’t like to talk about it, but… to easily just be able to tell her what Blueberry had to pull out of him…

“You’re just going to let it go?” he couldn’t help himself as he snapped a little.

She blinked a little, looking up from where she had been making a needle out of crystal to work with his string. “Huh?”

“You literally just spilled your life to us all, and you’re not even going to ask me?” he barked back at her.

“You said you didn’t like to talk about it,” she replied, a brow raised, questioning his outburst.

“You don’t like to talk about yours either!” he countered. “You couldn’t even fully talk about it, you had me _show_ it!”

Jewel hesitated a moment, letting him get whatever this was out. “I just figured you’d talk to me about it when you were ready. But, it doesn’t really matter, Error.”

“Doesn’t matter??” he questioned, utterly confused.

“Your history is your own. It might help me understand you more, but I don’t need to know it.” She sat up more in her recliner, looking over to him. “If there’s something you want to get off your chest, I’m all ears.” She held her hand out for him, either to take or lace with his strings, it was up to him. He didn’t even really look down, just instinctively, he laced their fingers together with strings. “But if you don’t want to share it with me, I’m not going to force it. And I won’t pry unless it’s important.”

“But…” he started, pulling at the strings between their fingers.

“Error, you said you’d be my friend no matter what. That’s the truth for me too. I’m not going to lie, I’d like to know more about you, but I’m not going to force you to tell me. As you pointed out, I know what it’s like to tell something before you’re ready.”

Error tensed a little as he pulled at those strings. Why was he feeling so guilty about pulling back from her? She was letting him! She didn’t care if he hid more! “Just ask me something, damn it!”

He felt his hand lifting and he looked over as she leaned over in the recliners, guiding his hand to his cheek once again. He couldn’t help it, he leaned into his hand, imagining that it was hers and almost nuzzled into it. She was too damn nice to him.

“Seriously… ask me something,” he muttered into his hand, feeling her through the strings. “I feel like I owe you something after all of that.”

“You don’t owe me anything, Error, in fact, I owe you for showing it for me.” When he gave her a look, she relented with a sigh. “All right, you win. If you really want me to ask you something…” she then began to think a moment. She wasn’t sure how this would play out, but… “What happened between you and Blueberry?”

Error was surprised that _that_ was her question. He supposed there was some tension, she did call him out on trying to manipulate him during her background explanation. “He’s an asshole,” was his simple reply.

“Okay, but… that doesn’t tell me _what_ happened.”

Error sighed a little, pulling his hand down and hers with it. “I was destroying his world,” he explained, leaning back in the chair. “I saved him so I could use him to fight Papyrus… because I couldn’t…” he hesitated a little. “It’s… still Papyrus, I can’t…” He felt the strings tighten and he glanced back over at her. He slowly reached over, pressing their fingertips together. “It’s why I liked having you come with me. I usually just… wait for a genocide run where Papyrus is already dead or… it bothers me for a while afterward… I try not to let it but…” he shook his head a bit. “Anyway, I couldn’t… and then Blueberry started talking, saying how all I needed was a friend. It was weird, and… genuine… so I kidnapped him and brought him back here with me. I kept him strung up, we talked… I realized he wasn’t a threat, so I let him go. Not like he could do anything or escape. I… really started to like him,” Error admitted slowly as if realizing it himself.

“But the fucker was too nice!” he suddenly barked. “There’s no way he could really like me! I destroyed his world, killed all his friends! Everyone he cares about!” He started glitching more. “I called him out on it, showed him the human’s soul from his world, and taunted him with it. He finally showed his true colors then. He lashed back out and took the soul from me. He was just waiting for a chance to use what he learned against me, and I gave him the shot so I could prove it.” He started shaking, not just glitching, clenching his eyes shut. “I can’t believe I actually started liking him! He was just biding his time, using me! He--!”

He felt arms wrap around him and he started glitching heavily, panic began to set in, but his senses began to register that this was Jewel touching him. Her scent was the first thing that he registered. He wasn’t sure why. But her warm touch, the feel of her skin… He was still panicking, but it was less intense, and he just… he wrapped his arms around her, their hands having freed themselves.

“You’re getting too good at manipulating my strings, damn it,” he muttered.

“Well, I don’t want to just sever them,” she smiled a little into his shoulder.

Error leaned into her, the feelings always conflicting in him like this. He loved this, but it terrified him at the same time. He always indulged as long as he could before he couldn’t physically handle it anymore. And every time she let him.

When he pushed her back, he looked up at her. “Let me guess… Blueberry told you something different?”

“No,” she admitted, which surprised him. “I just wanted to hear it from your perspective,” she said as she very gently caressed his face.

Error flinched but didn’t freak out like he thought he might. Maybe he was getting used to her touching him after all. “Easy, you’re all touchy today,” he teased her a little. But… “Don’t tell me you’re trying to get me to make up with him, are you?”

“I’m not going to force you to do anything,” she reminded him. “But I think there’s a lack of communication here. You… can be a little hotheaded after all.” With a glare from him, she chuckled. “Yeah, just like that.”

Error grumbled, “He fucking manipulated me and tried to again right in front of you.”

“I’m not going to deny that,” Jewel said as she sat back down on the armrest of her own chair. “Blue is manipulative, and he knows it. He uses his small frame and big eyes to get people to do what he wants. Kind of all he’s got going for him, so I can’t fault him for using what he has. And your assumption is fair. What you did is kind of hard to forgive. But it’s not impossible, Error.”

Error looked at her confused. “You were a kid and murdered two people who did less than I did.”

“Error, don’t even try and compare yourself to those two,” she scolded harshly, her tone dark. “You don’t rape and kill people, then make it some sick fucking game to torture them for years on end.”

“I do something comparable!” he argued. Did she really not see it?? “I _do_ kill people! Lots of them! I grab monsters by their _souls_ and _possess them!_ You really don’t get what that’s like for a monster, do you? I’m literally taking the very culmination of their being, the point where they’re most vulnerable and twisting it and making them do whatever I want! I make them attack their friends and loved ones! I make them hurt people they care about! It’s not sexual but damn it, I’m still violating them! And you can’t even say I wouldn’t do it to you because I have! I’ve tried!”

As he said it, he realized just what he had done. He felt so sick. His soul churned. He really was just like them, wasn’t he? He could barely spare a glance at her. He saw how the color drained from her face as he admitted exactly what he did to people. To all the monsters… he had done it in front of her… she had seen him take advantage of Blueberry to fight Stretch. He had grabbed at her soul to try and stop her when they had met… and again and again when they were still getting to know one another. He held onto it for so long… and then she let him do it again. She asked him to so she wouldn’t have to talk about what happened… something worse, but just barely.

It was the first time he had ever felt a retch reflex. He didn’t have a stomach, this shouldn’t be a thing. But all the chocolate he had eaten while they watched their show was coming back up. He couldn’t stop it. He could barely lean over the chair to avoid spitting up all over himself. He finally understood how Ink felt with all those moments of spewing his ink back up.

When he felt a hand gently touch his back, he jolted. He barely turned to smack her away before another fit overcame him. It wouldn’t stop! There wasn’t anywhere for this to come from, how was it..! He coughed, dry heaving as he leaned on the chair. He felt her coming near again and turned, actively hitting her hand away this time before she managed to get to him.

“Why?!” he then demanded, tears starting to line his eyes. “Why are you trying to make me feel better?! You should hate me! I violated you too! After everything you’ve been through, why..!”

“I-I…” Jewel stuttered, her hands shaking. She looked down at Error, though her vision was blurred with her own tears. She couldn’t comprehend what she just heard… what he had done… and Blueberry wanted to be his friend?? She wasn’t a monster, she didn’t…

She teleported.

“Jewel!” Error called after her, but she was gone. He shook and glitched, tears starting to fall. She should hate him! He knew that! But he wanted her to scream at him, call him names! Beat him down! Not just… cry and leave! That hurt worse! And it brought up another wave of nausea he had to deal with. He might have stayed by her no matter what… but he knew she couldn’t have meant it back… He really did destroy everything…

Blueberry was walking through the house with a laundry basket, picking up the dirty laundry from the bedrooms. However, as he walked down, he groaned. “Papy!” he scolded. “Come on, you promised you’d pick up your socks! It’s laundry day!”

“Yeah, yeah, I’ll get to it,” Stretch said as he sat back on the couch, phone in hand.

“Papy, it’s right there!” he scolded again, pointing to the socks near the television.

Blueberry walked down the rest of the stairs before plopping the basket on the couch next to his brother. “Pick them up or I’m going to start throwing them away, I mean it! Then you’ll have no socks!”

“Ugh, fine,” Stretch groaned.

He was about to get up when they both heard a soft sound, followed by several thuds. They turned and saw that Jewel had teleported in, but she had miss-stepped or something because she literally fell down the stairs.

“Oh, my stars! Jewel!” Blueberry called out as he instantly ran over to her.

She was laying on the ground and he knelt down next to her. He carefully reached out for her in case she was hurt as she slowly started to get up. When he saw her crying, he was taken aback. Did she hurt herself that badly? But when she looked up at him, instantly her arms wrapped around him and she clung. He felt her sob, her body shaking. He glanced back as Stretch came up next to him, looking her over, though obviously, he was more confused than Blueberry was.

“Jewel, are you okay?” he asked, holding her arms. He was afraid to hug her in case she was hurt. “What happened? Why are—”

“How could you forgive Error?” she suddenly asked, clinging to him.

Blueberry was confused. Error was her best friend, why was she suddenly..? “What do you mean?”

“After everything he did to you, _what_ he did to you, why the hell do you want to be his friend??” she practically shouted, pulling back.

Blueberry could see the amount of hurt, betrayal in her eyes.

“I ask myself that all the time,” Stretch commented, looking down at his brother. It was no secret he still tried, despite his own protests about it.

“Papy,” Blueberry scolded. Now was not the time. He turned back down to Jewel, wondering what happened. “He attacked us because he was hurting, that’s all. He just needed a friend and he’d realize what he does hurts people. He’s been doing a lot better since you’ve been his friend, Jewel!” Blueberry grinned. “It just proves I was right!”

“He fucking _violated you_ , Blue!” she cried, and Blue paled a little. What did Error tell her?

Stretch felt himself tense up. Was there something he was missing? Either way, he knew he shouldn’t pry it out of her, at least like this. She was an emotional wreck.

“Hey now,” Stretch started, squatting down and gently putting a hand on her shoulder. “I don’t know what’s going on, but right now, I think we should focus on calming you down and making sure you didn’t hurt yourself on that fall down. Come on,” he pulled his hand back and offered it to her. “Why don’t you take a seat on the couch?” he offered, “Sans and I will make you some tea or something to help calm you down.”

Jewel hesitated, but with a little prompting from Blueberry, that he agreed, she took Stretch’s hand and slowly got up. She didn’t seem injured by how easily she walked to the couch, but that didn’t mean anything. Blueberry knew she faked it, she hid a lot, he realized.

“Don’t worry, Jewel. I’m sure this is all just a big misunderstanding,” he tried. “Once you calm down we’ll talk it out, I promise. Did you want tea? Or maybe hot chocolate?”

“Do you have coffee?” she asked, her voice soft, almost broken. “If not, I’ll just take water…”

“We have coffee, don’t worry,” Stretch smiled down at her. “Come on, Sans,” Stretch then pulled his brother into the kitchen. The second they were in there, Blueberry started making a pot of coffee, and Stretch, well…

“What the hell aren’t you telling me?” Stretch narrowed his eyes at his brother. “Error did what to you?”

“I told you everything, Papy,” Blueberry honestly responded. “You saw the worst of what Error did. The only thing he did after that was threaten the human’s soul and abandon me in the anti-void.”

“Then what the hell was that?” Stretch asked, motioning back to the living room with Jewel on the couch.

“I don’t know,” he responded, worriedly looking back. “I’ve told her what Error’s done before… she said she’d talk to him for me, see if he’d just listen for once. I don’t…” he was wracking his brain, trying to figure this out. “He said something, obviously… She’s never had issues with him killing people before. Even after all of this…”

“All of what?” Stretch narrowed his eyes. She was okay with Error killing people? And Blueberry was okay with that??

“It’s only been a couple of days, but she told us about her powers, and how she got them. It wasn’t… pleasant,” he admitted. “She’s been through a lot… I wonder if something triggered this.”

Stretch sighed. Great, another trauma victim? Didn’t he have enough trauma for everyone? He went and got a glass of water. “Finish making the coffee, Sans. Maybe a little water will calm her down in the meantime to get her to make some sense then.” He was still convinced Blueberry was hiding something from him… but he couldn’t push it at the moment.

He walked back out with the water and offered it to her. He was honestly surprised she so easily took it, and started to sip it. Granted, it only helped the tears flow more, but it did that. How long had she been crying, he wondered? He sat down on the opposite end of the couch and looked over to her.

“You hurtin’ anywhere?” he asked. “That was a nasty fall, we’ve got painkillers if anything hurts.”

“No thanks. Magic kind of does that on its own,” she muttered.

“Really?” he rose a bony brow. “Is that a human magic thing?”

“Just… healing magic.”

“You can use healing magic on yourself?”

“To a point, I suppose,” she muttered.

Well, this was going nowhere. But she was talking. He sighed a little and leaned back. “You smoke?” he asked.

“No. Asthma.”

He rose a brow. “What?”

She sighed a little and took a sip of her water. “Human medical condition. Probably wouldn’t do anything now but when I was younger, before the magic kicked in to take care of all my issues, I would have problems breathing. Cigarette smoke only amplified it. Still don’t like the smell, but I doubt it’d trigger anything now.”

Stretch listened, confused, but just let it go. She was talking, calmer, and that was a start. She was still shaking, however. “So, listen… I know we got off to a rough start last time… but you risked your neck for my little bro, and that earns you quite a few points in my book. And you came here worried about him after learning… whatever it is, from Error. Can you tell me, what did he do? I’m not sure if Sans is telling me the truth.”

He saw her hand shaking more. “He’s… not telling you?” she looked over at him.

“I’m not sure,” he said honestly. “He says he did, that I saw the worst of it. What did you mean when you said he violated him? Please, I need to know.”

Jewel hesitated a moment, so many conflicting emotions running through her. Why did she still want to protect Error from this? Was she even right? Was Blue hiding this on purpose? He didn’t want his brother to worry about his glitch, but this… She knew what it was like to want to keep that secret… she should have told though. It would be better to get out… but that should be Blue’s decision shouldn’t it?

“S-sorry, I…” she started shaking more and she felt Stretch put a hand on her.

“You said you were a big sister, right?” he then asked. “If this was your little brother, wouldn’t you want to know?”

Instantly, she was more defensive. “Dude, you suck right now, you know that?” she quietly bit. “You think I don’t want to tell you? I’m fucking shaking, but I’ve been on both sides of the aisle here!” Stretch was taken aback, pulling away. “Of course I’d want to know if my little brother was hurt in any way, but when it comes to something personal, it’s not always my choice! If Blue’s not ready to talk, you can’t force him, it’s only going to make things worse! Trust me, I know. You know how long it took me to come to terms with being raped?” she barked at him.

Stretch paled, tensing, gritting his teeth. “A-are you saying that bastard--?”

“No! God no!” she barked back at him. “It’s just the only thing comparable I have to it! It’s why it bothers me so damn much!”

It took Stretch a moment to realize he had absolutely no idea what she was going on about. “Comparable to… what?”

“What… Error did…” she said softly. “Right, he said you were there for that,” she muttered softly realizing slowly. “I’m… arguing for nothing, aren’t I?” she pitifully laughed at herself, her shaking only worse. She was almost spilling the water from the glass. “How he… took control of Blue and…”

Slowly, Stretch was beginning to realize what was going on. She was comparing Error taking Blue’s soul with… No wonder she was upset. He put a hand over hers, trying to ease her shaking so she didn’t drop the glass.

“I think Sans is right, something is going on here and we should talk. But you should calm down first.”

“Heh, good luck…” she muttered. She was an utter mess right now. “How would you feel if you found out your best friend had been doing things that are comparable to your worst nightmare? A nightmare you’ve lived through for years?”

Years? Stretch had no idea what that meant, but he was hardly going to ask. Maybe he could get some answers out of his brother. “I… honestly have no idea,” he admitted. “But I get the nightmare bit. You know how the resets are, right? Sans said you saved our world before? From this very instance I think. So you know what it’s like when the kid goes on a genocide run.”

“At least you get the pacifist runs. My world was finite, everything that happened, happened. No resets, no do-overs. I watched my brother die and it was for good, and he died hating me.” She sighed. “Look… don’t… don’t try and making me feel better by trying to show you know what I’m going through, because I’m not in the right mindset for that. Besides, misery doesn’t love company, it turns into a fucking competition for who can be more miserable. Because pain is relative and everyone has their breaking point.”

She said that so harshly, he wanted to yell back. But she was right. Yelling would have only proven her right. He watched his brother die hundreds of times, that amount of pain… but he always got him back. He got a happy ending. To never have Blueberry come back? He thought he had that life when Error took him. He had also never seen his brother hate anyone… even Error…

“How do you take your coffee Jewel?” they then heard from the kitchen.

“Two spoonfuls of sugar, Blue,” Jewel responded, her voice clearer, but Stretch could see she wasn’t doing any better. He probably made things worse…

That seemed so bitter, but that’s what Blueberry did. He stirred it up and brought it out to her. When he saw how badly her hands were shaking, he instead put the cup down and sat beside her, gently holding her hands.

“Jewel, it’s okay. I don’t know what happened, but you’re here with us now. I’m not going to let anything bad happen to you, okay?”

“Blue, I…” She wanted to argue with him. She could handle herself. That this wasn’t something that she needed protection from… but it wasn’t in her. She did that before, and all it did was push her brother away. Stretch was right, wanting to know what happened… how attached did she get to Blue? She clung to him and Dream almost as fast as she did Error, and she didn’t have the excuse that she was desperate for them… not that she… felt desperate with Error either…

“It’s okay,” Blueberry said softly as he reached up, a gloved hand gently wiping her tears from her face. “I’m here. We can talk when you’re ready. I know how you have trouble keeping coherent thoughts when you’re upset.”

“Why didn’t you tell me what it meant?” Jewel then asked him, confusing the smaller skeleton. “What Error did to you? When he took your soul, when he…”

Blueberry tilted his head a little. “I did, at least I thought I did.” It had been a busy week between Nightmare’s appearance, her disappearance, and then processing everything once she returned. He couldn’t remember what he exactly said. But apparently, she did.

“I’m human, Blue. I don’t like my soul being grabbed but… humans don’t get the whole thing. To most, souls are just a religious thing, something not tangible to be claimed by gods once you die. They’re not completely wrong but they don’t realize it’s just as physical as the rest of us. I mean, hell, humans joke about selling their soul for a candy bar.”

“That’s messed up,” Stretch commented. God he needed a smoke.

Blueberry’s face paled a little at that information, but he didn’t dwell on it. “But you’re not like that,” he reminded. “I just thought… you knew. I asked you, didn’t I?”

“I knew it was personal, Blue. I didn’t know it was like… like what happened to me.”

Blue eyes widened dramatically. “What?? It’s not! It’s not like that at all!” he quickly tried to reassure. “Papy, help me out here!”

“I dunno, Sans, it kind of is.”

“You don’t even know what happened to her!”

“She already compared it to being raped, so I can guess. And she’s not wrong, bro. It’s not sexual like that, but it’s not far off. I agree with her, I don’t know why you’re so willing to forgive Error after what he did.”

“I’ve gotten over it! I know he didn’t mean it!”

“He did it to you twice, Blue.”

Blueberry and Stretch both turned, surprised at that. “What?” Stretch grit his teeth.

“That was the first time I met you all. Error was using Blue like a puppet, fighting you and Ink… your world started degrading, it was starting to delete. So I… reset the whole thing. Kicked Error and Ink out, sent you both back and neither of you were the wiser. I didn’t realize…” She held her head, putting her water glass down.

It took Blueberry a moment to process this information. He had a hand over his soul. “I… I don’t think Error realizes what he does…”

“He’s a monster, of course, he knows what it is, Sans!” Stretch barked. “Why are you defending him! She’s not!”

“I know he knows the implications, brother but I… honestly don’t think he saw what he did as anything that… horrible before. He’s angry, he lashes out. He uses what he has… I don’t… think he’s done it to many people other than me.”

“He did it to me,” Jewel muttered, making them turn to her. “When we first met. First thing he did was grab my soul and try to yank it out. He admitted he tried to possess me through it. It’s… not the same to me, I don’t feel… I can’t, honestly, I wouldn’t have felt him trying to take me over. But I know that feeling…”

“You… probably scared him,” Blueberry tried to defend him. “I mean, you’re really strong, Jewel, we’ve never seen anyone like you before.”

“Sans, stop trying to defend him! Why are you so adamant about this?! He’s not a good person!”

“He is, deep down! He’s been so much better with Jewel in his life! He’s angry all the time, but he’s nicer about it! When we met up to look for Jewel, he was… I dunno… pleasant to be around. It was like…”

“Bro, stop it! You’re sounding like you’ve been brainwashed by him! You’re saying things to make yourself feel better about what happened!”

“No, that’s… not it,” Jewel spoke up, still shaking a little. “When you’re victimized like that, Stretch… you blame yourself. You’re weak, you didn’t do enough… If I had just done this differently, it wouldn’t have happened… you hate the person… not…” Well, there was Stockholm Syndrome but Blueberry was obviously not suffering from that. It didn’t feel like Blueberry had stayed with Error too long by both of their stories… but still… She looked up at Blueberry, serious. “Why… are you so forgiving of him for what he did to you?”

Blueberry was silent for a moment, trying to come up with the best way to answer her question. “I just… you know him, Jewel, better than I do. When he attacked us, I could feel that he was hurting. He was just lashing out. Using my soul like that… yeah, it hurt, and the fact he did it again… but I truly believe he didn’t comprehend what he did. He lashed out with whatever he could, trying to make us hurt as much as he hurt.” He looked down at her, holding her hands as they shook. “What did he tell you, exactly, Jewel? Tell me.”

Jewel sighed a little, feeling Blueberry hold her hands like this… she remembered a time when her brother did everything he could to make her feel better. Blueberry was ticking all the boxes to just make her open up. And she couldn’t even blame his manipulative nature. This was genuine and it… she didn’t know how she felt about his answer…

“It… started when I asked if I could use his strings for a project… one thing led to another. He started going down memory lane but realized what he was doing and stopped. He got upset that I wasn’t pressing, after everything… so he demanded I ask something. So I asked what happened between you two. He told me and how he didn’t believe you truly forgave him. That’s… what brought this up. When I started suggesting why you would, he compared himself to… those two… and started going off. Told me exactly what he did, what it was and... I think he just realized it too. He doesn’t always think about what comes out of his mouth and it…” She started to shake. “He just… got so sick afterward… he wouldn’t let me near him, I just… I couldn’t…”

Blueberry pulled her into a hug, letting her cry on his shoulder. It really did sound like Error just put the two together… he got sick? That wasn’t like him either. “I know… it’s… hard to comprehend something like that,” he rubbed her back gently. “And despite everything, he’s your friend, it’s… hard to hear. Especially after everything you told us… but it’s… really not the same. I’ve never… ya know, but based on what you told me and everything, I know it’s not the same.” He held her a little tighter. “But we don’t have to talk about it now, okay? You should calm down a little first. How about you stay with us tonight? You can even take my super cool room!” he grinned.

“Blue, I…”

“No, it’s okay! You can’t fit on the couch here, you’re as tall as Papy and he spills off of it! Only difference is he’s lazy and doesn’t care! I don’t mind, mwehehheh!”

Jewel was about to protest, but Stretch chimed in. “You know, Sans is right. You should stay here tonight,” he smiled, making Blueberry turn and beam, his eyes lit up like stars.

“Yeah, we can make it a sleepover! If you need pajamas, maybe some of Papy’s will fit you! Or we can go buy you some!”

Jewel sighed a little. She wasn’t going to get out of this, and she definitely didn’t want to go back to Error right now. “All right.”

“Yes! Hey! Did you want to help me make dinner later?” he then asked, grinning. “You said you had that one meal, spaghetti tacos?”

“That one was for you and Classic Papyrus,” she reminded, forcing a small smile. She was hardly okay, but… “How about I teach you something else, hm?”

Blueberry grinned. “That’ll be awesome! But, I’ve got to do laundry and it’s still early. Did you eat lunch yet? I can make you something small and light so you’ll be hungry for dinner.”

“I’m… not really hungry right now, Blue, but thank you.” She leaned in and gently rested her forehead against his. “You’re the best little brother, you know that?”

Blueberry blushed a little, but he smiled warmly up at her. “I doubt I’m as good as your little brother. But I’m glad I could help.” He leaned into her a little before slowly standing up, getting her the coffee before it got cold. “Take some time for yourself, Jewel. You deserve it. Do you want anything?”

“Do you… have any spare paper lying around?” she asked hesitantly. “Maybe a pencil?”

Blueberry grinned, knowing exactly why she wanted those. “You bet! Let me get you set up!”


	31. Friends, Food and Drink

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A surprise announcement at the end!

# Chapter 31 – Friends, Food and Drink

It had been early afternoon when Jewel had come. By evening, there were a slew of papers by the couch, lots of scribbled out sketches of various feelings. Most she didn’t enjoy, wanted to crumple up, but Blueberry convinced her to save them and look back at them when she felt better. Making decisions in anger or grief was never the way to go. There was some wisdom in those words and Jewel often gave them herself… but she didn’t want to look at them so he put them aside for her. That was an acceptable arrangement.

By dinner, Jewel had gotten up to look and see what the skeleton brothers had in their pantry to see what she could make them. It had been a while since she had cooked for a family proper. A bit of spaghetti for Red and Edgy wasn’t much… Papyrus liked honey… she knew honey-brazed meats were a thing, but she wasn’t really fond of sweets like that… especially not sweet meat. How was she going to do this..?

“As weird as this sounds, my specialty is actually pasta,” Jewel admitted with a soft chuckle. “It’s honestly my favorite meal. Kind of funny this is the one place where Papyrus isn’t obsessed,” she scratched her cheek a bit.

“Well, if you want to make pasta we can go to the store and get some,” Blueberry offered.

“Well... while this would be the one place where neither of you are pasta’ed out,” she chuckled, “There is this one recipe I wanted to try… Stretch might like it more. It’s the one time I actually like sweeter meats… because barbeque sauce.”

Blueberry rose a brow. “Barbeque sauce?”

“Yeah. If I have to I’ll pop by Overtale and get it, but we’ll cook with as many ingredients from here as possible. Plus… as tall as Stretch is… I don’t know if pajamas are going to be a thing. His hips are a lot narrower than mine and so is his chest. If you really want to have a pajama party, I’ll have to buy some.”

“You really don’t own any pajamas, huh?” Blueberry asked.

“Not really,” Jewel sweated. “I normally just sleep in my clothes. I mean… Error doesn’t exactly have a washing machine. And my clothes tend to get trashed pretty regularly.”

Blueberry grabbed her hand. She was acting more normal, but he could tell she was still pretty upset. She was trying not to think about it and he couldn’t blame her, though that wasn’t a healthy way to deal with it. But, for the moment, he would let her. She needed to think clearly and a distraction was the best thing at the moment. They could talk in the morning after it had all settled.

“Well, I don’t know what they’d have for you, honestly, it’s kind of late.”

“I can always just go get it in Overtale. More shops.”

“You keep wanting to leave,” he muttered softly.

“Just for some shopping, Blue. It’s like, a quick pop, grab it, and come back.”

“But I can’t really go with you again, can I?” he pouted.

“I mean, you can, but you’d be stared at.”

“I don’t really care about that.”

Jewel sighed a little and crouched down to be closer to his level, making herself a little smaller than him. “Blue, you’re too sweet for your own good, you know that?” she told him as she gently caressed his skull. She leaned in and rested her head against his chest a little. “You’re just trying to keep an eye on me, aren’t you?”

“You’ve been through enough, Jewel. I know you were alone most of it, but you’re not anymore.” He wrapped his arms around her and gently rubbed her back. “I know this isn’t fixing it, but I just… want you to feel better. At least a little.”

Jewel sighed a little as he continued to try and comfort her. “Explain it to me, please, Blue… The way I see, hell the way Error sees it, what he did to you is just as bad as what they did to me… why don’t you see it that way? And ignorance doesn’t excuse the deed.”

Blue sighed a little and sat on the floor with her. He climbed into her lap just as he did before when she told them about her history. “Jewel… I just…” he sighed a little. “I’m not going to lie, I was terrified. He had my soul, I couldn’t fight him. He literally flung me around by it… He made me attack Papy… but there was something in him that just… made me feel for him, ya know? And getting to know him… He’s had it rough too. But it’s not…”

He tried hard to try and explain this. His brother would be better at this… “You said Error pulled at your soul with his strings… and when you met Papy, he used his magic on your soul too. Have any of the others?”

Jewel thought back a little. “Not… really?” she tried to remember. “I think Edgy, Red’s Papyrus tried when we fought… but Red didn’t try, he went straight for the Blaster and I didn’t give him time… Sans and I haven’t fought outside of just an argument… I stood against Ink at one point but we talked. Dream’s the only other one, but I was with him for that, and that was healing.”

“See, most monsters are peaceful, we don’t really fight. But we do use our magic on each other. It requires our souls. Alphys and I train together and she uses green magic on my soul to prepare me for it. Papy and I use blue magic. Using magic on our souls is… kind of normal. It can be offensive but it can also be used for showing affection. There’s a special kind of connection when two people love each other,” Blue explained to the best of his ability. “But you can’t force that one like you can… what happened to you,” he tried to show the difference delicately. “What Error did… He dominated me, yes, magically and physically with his strings. He made me do things… but nothing really… happened. It’s more like… just a bad fight than a traumatizing experience.”

Jewel listened, slowly processing it all. “That sounds… so different from what Error explained it as.”

“Error’s never experienced anyone touching his soul before,” Blueberry tried.

“What he did is still a violation,” they both heard as Stretch appeared, standing in the kitchen. He walked over and grabbed a chair, sitting in it backward with his arm on the back of it, looking down at them. “In a way, it is like what you described. You’re going in and pulling out a vulnerable part of a monster. One wrong move and you’re dust,” he explained. “Do you humans have something like that?”

Jewel thought about it. “Nothing so… obvious. There are plenty of things that if they’re damaged, even slightly, we can die. Our hearts, our brains, lungs… if you snap our necks we lose all function because the brain can’t connect to the rest of the important organs.” She thought back to Error’s attempts to hurt her back in the day. Strangling her with his strings, trying to make her vulnerable… but none of it felt… the same… “The only thing I can relate to being so… exposed… is… well…”

“That might be your experience projecting as well,” Stretch said as he looked down at her. “Have you ever really had magic take control of you, before?”

“Well… no,” Jewel admitted. “I mean, I’ve… lost control of my magic, gotten overwhelmed, and just… couldn’t stop as I went crazy, but…”

Stretch hummed as he thought of something. “So, is your soul really immune? Or do you do something to prevent anything happening?”

Jewel hesitated a moment before a hand went over her chest. “I repel it,” she admitted. “It’s automatic, part of the defensive magic.”

“Can you turn it off for a moment?”

Jewel looked up at Stretch as he gave her a brotherly smile. She hesitated a moment before nodding. That was when she felt her soul become weightless and she was lifted up, Blueberry still on her lap, this time just holding onto her.

“W-what?”

Blueberry grinned a little. “This is one of the things we can do. Papy used to do this to me all the time as a kid. We’d play and he’d float me up. He’s way better with magic than I am.”

“Nah, you’re pretty good yourself, bro, you just need to get your confidence up,” Stretch smiled at them. “But, how’s it feel?” he asked her.

Jewel shivered a little. “I-it feels weird,” she admitted.

“This is kind of what it felt like,” Blueberry added in. “To have Error’s strings around my soul. It was just another kind of blue magic, something I’m used to. But he made me do some things I wouldn’t normally do with it. So, while it was invasive, and what he did wasn’t very nice, it’s my choice whether to be mad at him or not. That’s what monster magic is, Jewel. If you trust someone, you open your soul to them. I wouldn’t… open my soul to Error like I do to Papy, but I know him well enough to know why he is the way he is. He just needs love, just like you do.”

“I know I asked a lot for you to open yourself like this,” Stretch added in, “but you have to trust me on some level, right?”

“You’re Blue’s brother, and you’re not a bad person. But, you know I could stop this as easily as I let you in, right? I’m different. It’s still… not the same to me.”

“But you’ve let yourself be vulnerable before,” Blueberry spoke up again. “You let Matt in, you let your friend Cat in. You let yourself be vulnerable with them. Did you regret letting them in?”

“They didn’t take advantage of it.”

“No, those two did,” he acknowledged. “But that’s the thing. Error’s not like them. He might think he is because he just sees the worst in what he does. And he does some pretty horrible things, I’m not going to lie. Error… well… he’s you,” Blueberry looked up at her. “How he hurts people is subjective, just like you think you hurt Matt by being close. What Error did is wrong, but I forgave him. Has even done anything remotely similar since you two started becoming close?”

“I… no,” Jewel admitted softly.

“What Error did to Sans isn’t something I would ever wish on anyone, nor will I forgive him for it,” Stretch added in. “It’s forcing your will upon someone, and you’re not wrong in your assumption. But that’s my take on it. Sans has his. Having one’s soul taken like that is something everyone experiences differently. Complete domination of my little brother is horrible, no _bones_ about it.”

“Papy! Quit trying to throw puns into this!” Blueberry scolded. He huffed, but he turned to Jewel as Stretch sat them both back down. “I… felt connected to Error,” he admitted quietly. “It was like I could feel him calling for help. I regret how things ended up… but… Neither of us can tell you how to feel about this, Jewel. Or how to make Error feel. You have to make that decision on your own.” He leaned in and caressed her face as he wiped away some tears. “But that doesn’t have to be now. How about we start making that dinner you wanted to try, huh? Come on, we’ll go to the store, get it started and we can discuss your pajama situation.”

“All right,” Jewel sighed a little. She could think more on this later. “Let’s go to the store and get what we need.”

“Hey, while you’re out…” Stretch started to grin.

“Papy, more honey?” he whined.

“Well, maybe,” he had an impish grin.

“What, honey whiskey?”

Stretched blinked. “They have that?”

“Okay, I know what else I’m grabbing.”

“What did you want, Papy?” Blueberry sighed.

“Liquor,” Stretch chuckled. “I was gonna show Jewel my lounge.”

“She doesn’t drink,” Blueberry huffed.

“You don’t?” Stretch rose a brow.

“Well, not anymore.”

“Alcoholic?” he questioned.

“Nah, just doesn’t affect me.”

A sparkle entered Stretch’s eye. “Cocky in your drinking skills?”

“No, I’m just immune to alcohol.”

“I doubt that,” he smirked.

“Oh no…” Blueberry sighed.

“I mean, you don’t have a liver to kill. If you wanna drink yourself silly.” Hell, maybe a few might take the edge off… if it would affect her.

Blueberry sighed heavily before grabbing Jewel’s arm and dragging her out. “Don’t encourage him,” he muttered as they headed on out.

Shopping was something mundane and easy to focus on. Jewel listed the recipe in her head and they gathered everything. They did head to Overtale to get a few things. Blueberry pouted when he couldn’t help buy his brother’s liquor from the human store, however. His money didn’t quite work here. Though, he was surprised to see monster currency in Jewel’s wallet too. Of course, she didn’t quite keep it on her person, she teleported it back and forth from wherever she kept her stuff.

“I’m surprised you have Gold, Jewel,” Blueberry brought up. “I mean, I suppose I understand the human currency… is it the same from your world?”

“Well, yes,” she chuckled a little. “Not that I brought any of that with me.”

“But, then… how did you get it?” he tilted his head curiously.

“I sell my crystals.”

He blinked, “Huh? Why? Didn’t you say they come from your soul? Why would you?”

“Because it’s easy to make them. I have an insane amount and make more all the time. And you know how pretty they are,” she chuckled, tapping the broach on his scarf.

“I suppose I can’t argue that,” he grinned. “So you sell the raw ones?” he asked.

“Yeah, jewelers love them. And almost every AU that’s underground has Gold as its currency so I just find one or two and go there constantly. Gerson’s pretty easy to trade with.”

“My Gerson or…” he sweated.

“Others,” she chuckled.

“Okay,” Blueberry laughed. “Because, ours is… well…”

“Yeah, I know, it’s okay,” she smiled.

“So, you got your pajamas, right?” he then asked, looking at the larger of the bags. She wasn’t letting him look before tonight. She made him go pick out his brother’s liquor while she found a pair she liked.

“Yes Blue,” she laughed. “I even got some cards. Maybe I can teach you a few games my family used to play. I think Stretch might like them too because you could bet on them if you wanted.”

“We’ve got cards back home,” he told her as if scolding her for buying something she didn’t need to. “And please don’t teach Papy any gambling games, he’s already got issues,” he groaned.

“I won’t teach him how to bet on them,” she laughed. “It’s complicated, but he could really gamble on any game if he truly wanted to, Blue. All you need is a lose or win scenario.”

“True,” he scratched his cheekbone.

Jewel chuckled, taking his hand. “Come on. We’re almost to a spot where we can get out of here.”

“Let’s hope Papy isn’t getting too drunk yet.”

“Heh, I doubt he’s going to pre-game when he wants to compete with me.”

Blueberry groaned but it was soon replaced with laughter as the two walked down. He was glad Jewel was putting her negative feelings behind her at the moment. She was focused on the task before them, even thinking of another method to distract herself. He knew the night was going to be difficult for her, but… he was there. He would be there to talk if she needed it.

Returning home, Blueberry was engrossed in what she did with dinner. A stuffed meatloaf with the barbeque sauce on top as a glaze. He was confused by the reddish-brown sauce, but tasting it, his eyes lit up. Tangy yet sweet! He was happy, he knew his brother would be too. Especially since it was listed as honey barbeque sauce! He had even seen the different honey whiskeys Jewel had mentioned and got a few for his brother to try. He didn’t know what the appeal was, but his brother would probably like the sweet liquor.

After dinner, Blueberry would clean up, and Stretch lead Jewel into his lounge, a little private area in the basement where Blueberry let him do what he needed. It was the only place he could smoke in the house because Blueberry only ever came down here to get him. It was his own little private sanctuary. He had a bar all set up and stocked, his new additions proudly displayed on the counter.

“They use honey with the whiskey?” he asked as he looked at the label.

“Yup. It’s a pretty sweet liquor. Not as bad as some of the more fruity drinks, but… eh…” Jewel shrugged a little.

“Well,” Stretch held a smile as he poured two glasses on the rocks. “Cheers!” He didn’t even finish a sip when he saw Jewel had downed it easily. She was even chewing on the ice cubes in the drink. He blinked at her. “Shit, you don’t play around do you?”

Jewel shrugged. “Been drinking since I was a kid.”

“What?” he rose a brow. “Your parents let you get away with that?”

“Well, culturally, both my mom’s and dad’s family came from countries were small amounts were permitted during dinner, even for children, so long as you were six or older. My dad did share shots with me during Christmas as a memorial to his dad, with his dad’s old stash, since I never met him. His weird way of connecting me with the grandfather I never knew. Strange as hell, that, considering he didn’t want me. Mom would let me experiment off of her stuff as a kid, sips here and there. I started really drinking at twelve. Stealing beers, taking shots. Self-medicating was what it was. Depression, all the pain that started to flare up at that point in my life from… everything. Booze helped a lot with the knife wounds and pulling out bullets, let me tell you.”

Stretch continued to stare down at her as she sat at his bar, while he stood behind it. “Sans said you had a rough life, but… damn. Driven to drink at twelve? Your parents really didn’t care?”

“Dad didn’t live with us at the time. Still a part-time influence. When he did come around, it was usually to beat me and get laid,” she shrugged a little. “He lived with his mom. Ornery old lady… loved her to death. She wasn’t the best influence either. She started smoking at twelve, told me that so long as I was safe at home, she was fine with whatever. She taught me a lot. Tried to get me to smoke with her,” she chuckled a little. “Didn’t get past me lighting her smokes for her when she started having trouble with her shaking. I guess I don’t have an addictive personality, nothing really “addictive” works for me, I suppose.”

He watched as she poured another shot, this time without the ice and just downed it in seconds. She didn’t even seem fazed.

Stretch sipped his, enjoying the taste more than just trying to get drunk. “You not a fan of this, then? You’re inhaling it.”

“Eh, maybe I’m hoping somewhere I’ll get a buzz so I can at least sleep tonight instead of dwelling on all of this…”

“Well, if you want, I can pull out the harder stuff,” he said as he turned, looking at it. “It’s really strong though, I don’t know if you humans have anything like it.”

“Doesn’t really matter. I’m hardly human anymore,” she muttered softly.

“What?” Stretch asked, surprised. “Care to elaborate on that? You look very human to me.”

“Looks can be deceiving,” she muttered a little as he poured her a glass of the stronger liquor he kept hidden. “I mean, hell, if my world still existed, I could easily take you back and you can see what people think of magic.” She took a sniff of the liquor before tasting it. It was stronger, so she wasn’t going to down it out of respect for his stash. She bought the honey stuff, she didn’t care about it.

“Just because you have magic doesn’t make you any less human,” Stretch told her, sipping his still first drink. “Human magic is what sealed us down here after all.”

“Your world and mine are very different, Stretch… even our humans are very different. Hell, no one bothers to question Blue in Overtale. Just mention acting or a costume and bam, no questions asked. I mean, hell, Error showed up and they stared at him, he was an oddity, but they still backed off pretty quickly. I mean, he glitches, I can’t really blame them…”

“You’re saying your world wouldn’t take to that easily?” he rose a brow curiously.

“Dude, they tried to kill me for healing magic.”

He coughed a little as she caught him mid-sip. “H-Healing magic?” Of all the things! The purest one?? “Can I… ask?” he then questioned.

“Not really important. Someone robbing a bank, a young mom was wounded, I reacted… caught the crooks in a barrier and went over to save the mom. Healing the wound to save her life, some dude comes and jumps on me and stabs me in the back.” Maybe she had something to do with their fear of magic in the hundred years prior… but healing magic?

“That’s messed up,” Stretch sighed, deciding he needed to down what was left and poured himself another. “I guess I can see why you’re more guarded when it comes to magic, to block it all out. But how does that make you less human?”

Jewel sipped her drink once again, taking a longer one. Stretch was admiring how easily she sipped at it. It didn’t burn her going down? She took her time with it, however, the silence stretching over them.

“My little brother called me a monster,” she said, causing Stretch to seriously look at her. “He hated me with everything he had… his soul started off green. Kindness… as we grew older and he realized the raw deal I got with our dad, he started to develop some yellow, Justice… he was a lot like Blue when he was younger. All he wanted to do was make people happy. He wanted to make sure everything was done fairly, he tried to be the mediator, even though it always got him in trouble. I had to bloody quite a few people who thought he was easy to push around… but I think that messed with him a little. It wasn’t just… He didn’t like it. Kept trying to pull me back. He tried to ground me… but I wouldn’t let him. The more trouble I found, the more he kept digging his feet in trying to pull me back… but he wound up drowning with me… I killed the kindness in him. Even the justice… it warped into this twisted sense of vengeance…”

“Jewel,” he tried, but she continued.

“He tried to kill me, you know…” she muttered, twisting her drink around. “I couldn’t tell this to the others… Blue doesn’t know… I tried not to delve too much into my brother with them. It wasn’t… important, regarding my magic… just another cliff note in the fuck-ups section…” She ran a hand through her hair, downing the drink before placing the glass back on the counter with a clank. “He… tried to kill me more times than I care to count over the years… he truly hated me… said he could never be related to a horrible monster like me…” She ran her finger over the glass.

“You’re not a monster,” he started to say, but she interrupted him.

“Of course not. Monsters aren’t like me. Demon, maybe, or devil,” she muttered. “Hell, Death Wolf probably fits better… bring death everywhere I go… curse everything.”

Stretch listened as she went down this road he didn’t ask for. But he knew that kind of talk. “You aren’t responsible for what other people do. You can’t change how people react to you either.”

“Even if it’s justified? I was a horrible sister, Papyrus… my brother needed me and I pushed him away. I thought I was doing him a favor by keeping him away from all the trouble I was getting into but I just… let him get devoured by hate anyway… maybe if I kept him closer I would have been able to shield him better… he wouldn’t have…”

“You sure the liquor isn’t affecting you? You got dark pretty quick there.”

Jewel laughed hollowly. “Nah. I’m just naturally dark… hide it behind a smile…” She sighed before pouring herself another drink as she finished the last one.

He came around and sat with her at the bar. “So… is this really about your brother? Or are you blaming yourself for what’s going on with Sans? Because you couldn’t have known what Error did.”

“Your insight could use some work,” she sighed a little. “No it’s… I know what Blue said… but you and Error are on the same page, surprisingly… and I tend to agree… I can’t just… not compare…”

Stretch sighed a little. “We can’t tell you what to think. But I’m with you. Obviously, I’ve never been… ya know, but to do what he did… it’s pretty close in my book.”

“I just…” She rubbed her arm. “He’s my best friend… or was? I don’t know…”

“You’re thinking he won’t be your friend anymore after this?”

“I know he won’t leave me… but that’s the problem. I don’t know if I can be friends with someone who… and it’s fucking hypocritical!”

Stretch rose a brow. “What do you mean?”

“I mean, out of all the things he does… murder, destroying worlds, those don’t bother me. His job is a cruddy one but it needs to be done. So long as things are born, others need to die. AUs are no different. He just needs direction, ya know? But this…”

“This isn’t related to his job,” Stretch followed her line of logic. Not that he agreed on her stance with his “job” after all. He did attack his world to try and erase it.

“Not…” She sighed. “It’s just hypocritical of me to judge him… I’ve done a lot of horrible things too. I’ve murdered people, I’ve emotionally tortured… hell, physically tortured. If I burn you with magic, it will never, ever heal. Even once you die it’ll continue to burn you until nothing’s left…”

“Fuck…” Stretch blinked.

She sighed and rubbed her arm. “But I’ve never…”

Stretch listened to her. “It’s a line he’s crossed that you’re not willing to. It’s okay to have boundaries, Jewel.”

Jewel sighed and sipped her drink once again before placing it down. “Ugh, I don’t want to think about it anymore,” she said as she rubbed her hands over her face.

“Then don’t,” he shrugged. “We can keep drinking until we can’t feel anything anymore.”

“Well, you can. I don’t think that’s possible for me.”

“Oh come on, I bet you’re just posturing. You got depressed pretty quick, that has to be the booze. You’re on your fourth drink already, and that’s strong stuff.”

“Heh, fine. I’ll keep drinking til you pass out then,” she smirked a bit, downing her fourth glass in one go.

Stretch stared at her as she quickly downed it. “Oh, you’re on!”

It had been a couple of hours and Blueberry had been worried as he had heard a few strange sounds from down in the lounge. He normally didn’t go down there, but he was worried about his brother. He believed Jewel when she said she was immune, but his brother? He tentatively came down the stairs, turning lights on as it was darker than what he liked.

“Papy? Jewel?” he called.

“Just finishing up, Blue,” he heard Jewel call back.

With a relieved sigh, he came all the way down, walking in. He could smell the stale and fresh cigarette smoke. When he entered the lounge proper, he saw his brother passed out on the bar while Jewel was finishing off a bottle of wine.

“You’re still… drinking?” Blueberry asked incredulously.

“He opened the bottle. Liquor you can put back up, but once you open wine, that’s it. You have to drink it, it’ll go bad and won’t taste right.”

He noted the empty bottles of whiskey, bourbon, rum, vodka… all of it… “How much… did he drink?”

“Eh, most of the honey whiskey, I had two shots of that. And a shot or two of the rest while I had it. Your brother can really handle alcohol.”

“That’s not something to be proud of him for,” Blueberry whined. “I can’t carry him up the stairs.”

“Don’t worry, I got him,” she said as she quickly drank what was left in the bottle. She set it down and stood up. Instantly, Blueberry was worried she’d get lightheaded from all the drinking, but no… she was stone-cold sober… He watched her pick up his brother with ease, carrying him in her arms. “So, let’s get him to bed. He’s going to be completely miserable in the morning.”

“I… all right, careful,” he said as he led her back up the stairs, holding the door open for her so she could get Stretch up the stairs and into his disaster of a room. “Careful, don’t trip. Ugh, I’m so sorry about his room.”

“It’s okay,” she said softly as she put Stretch down on the bed and draped one of his sheets over him.

As they left, Blueberry stared up at her, looking a bit worried. “Why did you drink all of that, Jewel? Were you hoping to get drunk?”

Jewel shut the door to Stretch’s room, and she sighed a little. “Kind of… I was hoping to at least get a little bit of a buzz. I don’t think I’m going to sleep well tonight… too much on my mind.”

“That’s not healthy, Jewel.”

“I know… old habits though. Your brother’s a bit of an instigator too.”

“Tell me about it,” he sighed. “But, you should get comfortable. Go change into your pjs, I wanna see them,” he grinned at her. “And I’ll show you mine!”

“All right, all right,” she said as she gently caressed his skull as she walked past.

Blueberry excitedly ran to his room and started going through his drawers. He had the perfect pajamas for tonight. He managed to find them in the back. He had barely worn them but he knew she had to like them. They were blue pajamas but had bright yellow, white and very light blue stars on them. He changed, buttoning up the shirt and adjusting the collar. He was so excited. She was human, after all, she got to see the real stars!

He left his room, hearing the bathroom door open beneath him. “Jewel, you done?” he called.

“Yup, I’m coming up.”

He waited by the stairs, but he didn’t see her. He tilted his head a little, confused, but then he felt a tap on his shoulder. He jumped before turning. She teleported! “Cheater!” he scolded, but he then stared at her pajamas. They were fuzzy, yet looked silky at the same time. And there was a pattern of hearts on them, some upside down and others right side up.

“Human and monster souls?” he blinked as he looked at her pajamas.

“Well, humans don’t realize it, but yeah, that’s what I thought,” she smiled a little. “Just… everyone being happy together.”

Blueberry’s grin grew large. “I like it! Very you!” he laughed, but he couldn’t help it as he touched her sleeve. “Oh! It’s so soft!” he grinned, his eyes matching his pajamas as he caressed the sleeve.

Jewel laughed a little. “I love fleece pjs. But yours are very fitting too, always shooting for the stars there, eh, Blue?”

“Not to mention the Star Sanses, mwehhehhehheh!”

Jewel chuckled a little. She didn’t mind him feeling the material on her arm. In fact, she was kind of glad he liked it. “Hey, Blue? Can I ask a favor?”

“Of course, Jewel,” he smiled up at her. “What is it?”

“Can you… stay with me tonight? I know you said you’d sleep on the couch but… I just… don’t want to be alone…”

“Of course, Jewel. But I… uh… only have the one bed.”

“That’s not an issue, Blue. I made a couch, remember? I can make a bed, I’m not worried. And it’ll be gone in the morning.”

Blueberry nodded, smiling. “Then come on, let’s get set up!”

Jewel followed him into the room where he gave her the sort of grand tour. She chuckled a little at him, honestly not paying attention. Her mind was still elsewhere. She was able to fake it most of the day, but… she honestly was pretty depressed about everything. This, right here… was so she didn’t do anything stupid. If she was left alone in a room… well, crystal knives were a thing she could make, after all…

“Jewel?”

She had spaced out and it was worrying Blue. Her gaze looked so dark, her eyes got greyer, almost like Ink going colorless. It worried him.

“Sorry,” she muttered a little. “Maybe I’m more tired than I thought,” she lied. She snapped a blue crystal bed into existence. It wasn’t anywhere near as nice as the one in the anti-void, just a simple little bed that was big enough for her to sit on the floor near his bed. They were almost level with one another.

Blueberry blinked and he pressed down on the mattress. It was like the couch, all watery! His eyes became stars and he jumped down on it, stomach first, laughing as he bounced in the water.

Jewel chuckled a little at the sight. “Seems you really like water beds.”

“This is so fun! I didn’t know you could have a bed made of water!”

“Oh, yeah, humans use them all the time back home. Well, some. They’re not as popular anymore, they pop and make a mess,” she chuckled. “But, can’t pop crystal,” she said as she tapped the “mattress.” It was crystal, just pliable.

“That’s amazing!” his eyes lit up more. “Could you make me one?”

“Probably. But what would you do with your old mattress?”

“I can keep it for spare guests!” he grinned. “Maybe the whole bed. Would you be able to make me a blue crystal race car bed?” he pleaded with her, beaming.

“Yeah, shouldn’t be a problem. But it can wait until morning, yeah?” she chuckled.

Jewel sat on the bed carefully, pulling herself up. Blueberry finally got up and got her a spare set of blankets and a real pillow for her to sleep with. But as he saw her get settled, he sat with her on the bed.

“Jewel? Please, be honest with me. Are you really okay?”

Jewel hesitated, but those eyes… and the fact he probably already knew… “No, Blue… I’m not… I just…” she sighed.

“It’s okay. You don’t have to talk about it,” he reassured her. “Do you want a hug though?”

“Yeah,” she said, a few tears starting to line her eyes as she leaned in, wrapping her arms around the tiny skeleton.

Blueberry wrapped his arms around her, holding her as tightly as he could. “You don’t have to hide your feelings, Jewel. It’s okay to be upset. It’s natural. Remember, sometimes you have to be sad in order to be happy again. I’m here, you can be sad, I’ll take care of you.”

The flood gates opened. It was just that little bit of prompting after barely being able to hold on that caused her to just break down. She openly started to sob in Blueberry’s pajama shirt, gripping the fabric as not to squeeze him too hard.

Blueberry, honestly, was surprised by how much she was holding back. He knew she was upset but… it wasn’t like he had seen a lot of her breaking down… the memories played before them was one thing… this was another. It was no wonder she didn’t want to be alone. But minutes ticked by and she wasn’t stopping. It calmed somewhat, but she still clung to him and she still cried. This wasn’t going to do her any good. So he simply draped the blanket over them both and laid down with her, holding her as long as she needed. He could probably slip away once she fell asleep… but that didn’t feel right. He said he would be there for her, and he would. But even as she drifted, so did he… never once letting her go.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> After 30 plus chapters, I figure, even though it's not a comic, there are some questions people would like to ask. I mean, there are A LOT of characters and a lot going on. It's still going strong, and I figure I'd give people a chance to ask the characters that are featured in the story anything they want! You can even ask me anything as well as the author!
> 
> You can ask on here in the comments, on my Tumblr, or on the image itself on my DeviantArt! I'll answer them all as I get to them, not really in a specific order, whichever is the easiest to get out. This is my first time really doing something like this, so... I hope it gets traction.  
> https://rainingjewel.tumblr.com/post/618664352192561152/undertale-encoded-is-on-fanfictionnet-and-ao3
> 
> https://www.deviantart.com/guardianoftheflame/art/Undertale-Encoded-Ask-Us-Anything-842629548
> 
> Ask #1 – Fight Fight FIGHT 
> 
> https://www.deviantart.com/guardianoftheflame/art/Encoded-Asks-1-Fight-fight-FIGHT-842683700
> 
> Ask #2 – Abyss!Sans
> 
> https://www.deviantart.com/guardianoftheflame/art/Encoded-Asks-2-Abyss-Sans-842763194


	32. Light in the Darkness

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Asks posted at the bottom

# Chapter 32 – Light in the Darkness

Stretch had the worst hangover he had ever experienced. It took him ages to roll out of bed… how did he get here? Blueberry could never carry him. But then he remembered the guest they had as well…

“There’s no way she could have… she drank more than me!” he thought, before wincing at the sound of his own thoughts in his head. It hurt… damn did it hurt… but it was his own fault, he supposed. She did warn him, and he tried to keep up.

When he got downstairs, he saw it was empty. Blueberry had probably gone to work already… He slowly slunk into the kitchen to be surprised by Jewel sitting there with a cup of coffee, one set and ready for him as well, he assumed. He couldn’t help but smile a little as he sat down, quietly sipping at the rich black flavor for a moment. He normally hated black coffee, but when he was hungover, it tended to help more than if he added cream and sugar. At least, that’s what his experience was. He didn’t know if it actually worked, nothing really cured anything, it just felt a little better.

While he sipped at the rich, black brew, Jewel got up and gently placed a plate of pancakes in front of him, the sounds softer than Stretch expected with how his head hurt. She was being silent as well, and he was grateful for it.

He probably should eat, he knew. Blueberry was going to throw a fit if he didn’t. But it just wasn’t in him. It felt like a chore and the thought alone of a fork scraping against the plate just filled him with cringe and anxiety.

“Thanks,” he said, his own voice booming, despite how quietly he talked normally, and even more so now. “But I don’t think I can—” he started, before he flinched at the hand being placed upon his head. He expected it to hurt, but instead, he felt a warmth and the pain began to ebb away. He almost closed his eyes into the feeling of relief. He instantly realized what she was doing, but how is what got him. “Healing magic can’t cure hangovers,” he spoke up.

“No, but pain is pain, no matter what the cause. I can numb pain as much as I can close a wound. It’s still temporary, as would any painkiller would be. But this should help for a few hours at least, let you get on with your day, maybe get some actual meds in you. After you eat, of course.”

“Just full of surprises, aren’t you?” he muttered a little, but he was grateful. “So… really weren’t lying about being immune, huh?”

Jewel chuckled. “I told you not to keep pace with me.”

“Ugh, yeah, learned that the hard way,” he muttered, rubbing his head now that she was done. He still felt some of it, but it was easily ignorable now. “Remind me of this stupidity if I try again, huh?”

“I don’t think you will,” she chuckled. “I don’t think Blueberry approved either. Oh, by the way, he wants a new bed.”

Stretch rose a brow. “Why?” he asked as he got the honey for his pancakes. Better than syrup.

“Because he discovered water beds,” she laughed a little.

“What now?” he rose a brow.

“A mattress filled with water, like a balloon. Humans made them up ages ago, they’re pretty comfortable. Probably the closest to floating on water a skeleton would get, huh?”

“Yeah, we’re not really buoyant,” Stretch chuckled. “Kind of sink to the bottom. Still, where did he learn about those?”

“Eh, my fault. I made a bed out of crystals, including their liquefied form, so Blue wouldn’t have to sleep on the couch. He couldn’t stop bouncing,” she chuckled.

Stretch rose a brow. “You… can make crystals? Like, what, we can make bone?”

“Eh, not quite. But you notice that broach on his scarf? That’s the same thing.”

“So that’s where that came from. He hasn’t taken that thing off except to shine it, ya know,” Stretch chuckled. “You’re really special to him.”

“Well… he’s sweet, and it’s hard not to love him.” Despite what she thought at first. Old habits, she supposed. “I suppose I’m lucky he cares about me.”

“You are. Especially with what you’ve told me,” he said, remembering more of last night than what he wanted to. “I suppose I can’t blame you for being angry about your circumstances. Hell, you know what the resets are like to us who remember, right?”

“I remember them too,” she said softly. “Even what you don’t,” she reminded. “I’ve reset your world to save it before if you recall.”

“Sans told me about that,” he said as he lifted his coffee, sipping it. He started adding his cream and sugar at this point since his head stopped hurting. “I suppose I should thank you for saving my brother, more than once.” Times he couldn’t even remember… that bothered him a bit.

Jewel shrugged a bit. “Just hope you don’t mind sharing him, as the little brother. I think I’ve been adopted by him and… well… I don’t really mind. It’s kind of nice, to have a little brother again…” She really needed to go see Sans about that now… she owed him an apology.

“That might take some getting used to,” Stretch admitted a little nervously. He could feel the sweat beading down his skull. “You’re… nice enough but I still don’t…”

“I get it, you barely know me.” Jewel let out a bit of a sigh and she finished her coffee before going to the sink and washing it quickly. She then headed for the door.

“Where are you going?” Stretch questioned.

“Gonna say goodbye to Blue. He’s working on his puzzles, but I need to get going. Told him I’d wait on you.”

“You’re leaving?” he questioned.

“You two have lives, you can’t keep trying to tend to me forever. Besides, it’s not going to be healthy for Blue to be around me constantly while I’m figuring everything out. Pretty sure he’s an empath too, and I don’t want to bring him down with me. Besides, I really need to get a new phone and run a few errands. But I promised him I’d come back for dinner. Not going to let him worry about me either.”

“Well, so long as you’re not going to go mope anywhere. Errands are a good way to help keep your mind occupied as you try and figure out your feelings,” Stretch agreed. “Are you cooking again? That was good last night.”

“Eh, I can, I suppose,” she chuckled. “Blue seemed to like learning some new recipes.”

“Please, I can’t handle the tacos. They’re inedible.”

Jewel chuckled. “Classic has the same problem with spaghetti.” She’ll have to fix that too. “I’ll figure out something.”

“Thank you,” he practically wept.

Jewel chuckled and waved him off. “Easy there, Stretch, you still have lunch to get through. But, I’m going to go see Blue. Don’t forget to take something for your head later,” she reminded him before exiting the house.

Talking with Blue was easier than she thought. He, of course, didn’t want her to go, but he understood the errands. She even got him to write down his number so she could text him when she got her phone. It was one of the ways she got him to be okay with all of this. He was going to worry so much… and she knew she couldn’t stop him. It was just who he was. The fact that he fell asleep with her last night instead of doing the proper thing and going to his own bed… well, he was a little brother, after all. And honestly, it wasn’t as bad as when Error fell asleep with her…

She mentally kicked herself for remembering that as she waited in line at the store. Why was that coming up now? And why was her heart racing with that image? Probably because of how confused she was, that had to be it. She cared about Error, there was no doubt in her mind about that… but to have found out he did something so… violating… then again, the person he did it to had forgiven him. She understood why Stretch never would. It was an older sibling thing… but he also agreed on her version of events, even if Blue didn’t… but shouldn’t that be what she focused on? Blue’s version? But he was too damn innocent! Of course he’d make excuses to give anyone the benefit of the doubt.

Her name was called and she went up to the salesperson. He was a bit condescending, but she was used to it. No matter the era, there was always someone who thought women were weak targets. He thought she would be an easy sell, trying to get her on pointless things when she insisted she knew what she wanted. He kept trying to blow smoke to get her to sign up for stuff she didn’t need. She shut him down pretty quickly. At least there was someone to take a little frustration out on. She got a manager involved, got her phone, paid for it, whole, out of pocket, and replaced the sim card and the SD card with the one from her old phone. She did buy upgrades, she would have to transfer things… not hard in the code itself, to the new phone, but… she needed what was saved on those cards. Photos, memories, from a lifetime ago… she wasn’t going to risk them to anyone else.

Jewel let out a sigh as she left the store. Much more of a hassle than what it was worth. But it was done. As she took some time to set it up, she started programing some numbers in there. She finally had Red’s number too, hilariously. Her service picked up his voicemail from when she was missing.

“Took you long enough, numbskull,” she teased.

But there was still a lot more to do with this phone. She decided to put it off for a moment and get some coffee. As she walked down the coffee shop, she noted a shadow on the rooftop, just looming over. Their back was to the sun, and it made it incredibly difficult to see them. She slowly slipped into the coffee shop. As she waited, she kept glancing back out the window, to see if the figure was still there.

“Good afternoon, ma’am, what can I get for you today?” the barista sweetly asked.

“Two large French vanilla cappuccinos, both with an extra shot of vanilla and one with extra milk.”

Upon paying, Jewel left with the two coffees in hand. She glanced up and the shadow had not yet moved. Perfect. She teleported up and got a closer look at the figure.

It was a short skeleton in a long, black robe. Well, he was average for a Sans. He had a rope tied around his waist, along with one on his neck, kind of like a bolo tie with a gaster blaster ornament adorning it as the centerpiece. His eye sockets were closed and he looked like he could easily be pushed over the edge. Jewel smirked a bit as she took the cup of coffee in her left hand, the one with extra milk, reaching around and gently putting it under his nasal cavity, letting the steam work its way up. As he began to stir, she lifted it and he followed, still asleep, before reaching subconsciously for it.

“Whoa, easy there pops!” she spoke, a bit louder than normal, which caused his eye sockets to shoot open. Pinprick eye lights stared up at her, his hand almost at hers, frozen in place as he had not realized the coffee he had smelled was real. “I’m still very much a mortal.”

His eye sockets felt impossibly wide as he looked up at this figure before him. It took him too long to recover, so unlike him.

“This… this isn’t a dream… right?” he then pleaded. “Gods, if it is, please, don’t let me be woken.”

Jewel chuckled a little before she adjusted her hand, holding the coffee by the top and gently placed it in his bony hand. He could feel the weight, but his dreams had lied to him before. Fatigue, a semblance of weight, it was all very vivid. He watched as she sat down on the very edge of the roof, looking over the city as he had been before he fell asleep. His bones felt shaky as he slowly went and sat down near her. He stared at the coffee in his hand before taking a sip. His eyes widened further as he realized this wasn’t a dream. It had been far too long since he had tasted this magnificent flavor, he had long forgotten exactly how it tasted. It was unbecoming of Death to cry, but he felt tears well up in his eye sockets.

“Is it… really you?” he asked, turning to her.

“How would I know your favorite otherwise?” she smiled warmly at him. “But, I mean, I could tell you some embarrassing stories if you want. How about the time you were trying to keep up with me when I was on my bike and you weren’t paying attention and your robe got caught in the spokes?”

He couldn’t hold himself back, he snorted as he tried to keep some composure, and not let the tears fall. He couldn’t believe it… “I-I can’t… why? How?” he asked her.

“Eh…” Jewel shrugged a little. “I broke the wall, dad, sorry,” she chuckled.

“Wall?” his brow furrowed worriedly.

“I… well, you remember, right?” she asked, as she gently caressed the lid of her coffee with her thumb. “After… everything… I just… disappeared, right?”

“Yeah,” he said softly, looking down.

“Well, I wasn’t… ya know. I fell out of the world. Out into the code.”

Bony eyes grew wider at the implication. She left the multiverse? “Miss, that-!”

“Jewel,” she interrupted.

“What?”

“It’s Jewel now, Reaper,” she smiled over at him.

Reaper stared at her for a long moment, before gently smiling. “Finally warmed up to the name she gave you, huh? I always thought it fit you.”

“Yeah, yeah, go ahead, rub it in,” she chuckled. “I know I yelled at you when you tried to call me it too.”

He chuckled a little, but it soon fell. As good as it was to have her back… “Where… you were in the code the entire time? Outside of the multiverse?”

Jewel rubbed her neck a little. “Yeah… after… I just… lost control, I think. I was so upset and… the next thing I knew, the world opened up and I was swallowed. Thought for sure you were dragging me to Hell or something, finally had enough of my shit,” she sweated.

Reaper stared at her for a while. “You know I wouldn’t have. Not like that.”

“But you definitely had enough,” she laughed hollowly.

“Yeah… what happened…” he sighed a little, closing his eyes. “I get it, more than either of us would like, but… still, it…” He sighed again. “Just… tell me what happened, please. It’s been… what? Over three hundred years?”

“Really?” she questioned, looking back at him. “Huh, I thought it doubled, but damn…”

“What doubled?”

“The time I spent in the code. I had two isolation stints there. First one, I was trapped, I couldn’t… do much of anything. I… kind of went crazy for a while… just… nothing but black everywhere, no way to tell up from down, not even really gravity. It was so disorienting and… well…”

“Why didn’t you call for me?” he asked quickly. “I would’ve—”

“I did,” she admitted softly, interrupting him.

Reaper sat there in shock. He couldn’t hear her… see her… she was outside of his view… trapped… “I’m so sorry… If I had known…”

“Don’t worry about it,” Jewel spoke softly. “It… gave me much needed time to reflect on my life. Over a hundred years to just… sit and slowly figure out what was around me… eventually I managed to break out. Learned how to teleport,” she laughed. “Only took me a hundred years to learn one of your tricks, eh? I went back home… it was so different… I looked around for you but I couldn’t find you.”

Reaper was silent, just listening.

“I suppose I don’t blame you. Who would think a mortal could live that long, eh?” she chuckled softly. She really didn’t blame him, it was clear in her voice. “Besides, after another six years I was back in the code again.”

Reaper was quiet. That time frame…

“So… did I do it?” she then asked him, looking at him.

“Yeah…” he affirmed softly.

“Thought so… too early for the others to exist at that point.”

“You always did like to leave me more work at the end there,” he lulled, making her chuckle a little. He couldn’t help the smile that tugged at the sides of his mouth. Despite everything… it was just… so good to have her back. His soul ached that he couldn’t just embrace her.

The silence wasn’t awkward between them, even with all the time that had passed. It was like… it didn’t even move for them. It made sense to him, an eternal force of death and all, but for her… it just felt… weird. She survived well past what she should have… more times than he cared to count. Natural and unnatural occurrences that happened to her… and now this? Just how many natural laws was she going to break? Heh, he’d have to start a betting pool. His money was on her, every time.

“So, you still sleep standing up waiting for demise, huh?”

Reaper chuckled. “Eh, I’m far more overworked now. Kind of need it.”

“I believe it. Freaking millions of AUs and timelines. Is Raps doing okay?”

“Heh, yeah, he’s working more now. Kind of didn’t have a choice. I try and keep him to the monster worlds though. Humans are…”

“Yeah, I know. How do you guys even handle the resets, by the way? I mean… seems pointless to reap souls in the Genocide runs when the kid just resets it.”

“Heh, you’re still pretty on point with my job it seems,” he smirked at her. “Yeah, we don’t bother unless it’s a permanent thing,” he explained. “If the world is done with the resets, or if something happens.”

“Like a certain skeleton going around and deleting worlds.”

“Yup. As you know, Death follows destruction,” he smirked at her. But when he saw she wasn’t smiling, he knew something was going on. “What is it? I just get my little light back and she’s already dimming.”

Jewel chuckled at his nickname for her. “Maybe you can help me out,” she said softly. “I… had a bit of an issue with Error.”

He was thrilled she still didn’t mind his name for her. That was the only reason he used her human nickname. She hated it, he knew, but… He rose a brow. “Error… _the_ Error? You know him?”

“I’ve been around for a while. He and Ink were the ones who kind of… pulled me out of my second isolation. I was so desperate for contact with someone after they found me by accident and I… well, long story short, Error’s my best friend… or he was… I don’t know…”

Reaper rose a brow and turned more towards her. “Light, what happened?”

“Ya know, a lot of this could have been avoided if you explained how important souls are to monsters,” she lightly scolded, teasingly.

He rose a brow. “Since when were you going to meet other monsters?” he playfully defended himself, smirking a bit. But he saw where she was going with this. “You’re talking about when he grabs their souls, aren’t you?”

“And possesses them. How… violating it is.”

“I see,” he said as he pulled his leg up to lean against it, staring down at the streets. “But ya know, I’m hardly one to judge. I mean, I rip violent people’s souls out of them too. Granted, most of them are human, not monsters.”

“You don’t murder people as much as you collect the souls.”

“True, but there are plenty of violent ones that refuse to be collected. You remember the stories I told you, yes?” he asked. “The ones you dealt with as a kid were just left behind from strong feelings, ties that weren’t easily broken until you somehow convinced them.”

“So, what, you’re not bothered by what he does?”

“You have to admit, I’m pretty desensitized,” Reaper shrugged.

“But you hate your job.”

He froze a moment before looking at her. He stared into her eyes before his own softened. “How long have you known that?”

“Since we met,” she chuckled a little. “I’m an empath, remember?”

“I keep forgetting that little detail. I thought I was good enough at hiding my emotions, even from you.”

Jewel chuckled before taking a sip of her coffee. She really wasn’t going to be getting any good advice on this, was she?

“But…” Reaper started as he looked out on the world. “You’re hardly clean yourself.”

“I know, I’ve got a body count, high LV, all that jazz. But what he did to Blue… to others… It’s like…”

“Not really,” Reaper said as he sipped his coffee. “It’s violent, and it’s not pleasant, but he doesn’t get the same kind of sick thrill out of it. His pleasure comes from being able to hurt others to help his pain. You know that feeling, don’t you?”

Jewel’s eyes widened a bit. Was that really all it was?

“Besides, you’ve manipulated souls too,” he pointed out.

“How?” she rose a brow. “I’m not able to use blue magic like you or any other Sans. I can’t use other types of soul magic, I’m not a monster.”

“But you’re an empath with special powers,” he reminded her. “You’re not too far off from what the human mages were like in the precursor to all these AUs. Your circumstances are just… different, and exceedingly rare. So much so even we couldn’t predict what would happen to you.”

Jewel listened, thinking back. There was a lot to go through. “Are you… saying when I forced people to feel..?”

“Pretty much,” he said softly. “You forced your will upon them to feel fear, pain, anger to fuel your own power. And you didn’t always do this with magic. You would torture people if you recall. In a sense, you and Error are exactly alike.”

Jewel was silent, and she chuckled. “And you would know. After all…”

“Death follows Destruction,” he chuckled. “You and Error both, you make my life so, so busy.”

She had forgotten some small details like that… God it was good to see Reaper again. But as they sat there, she had to ask, as she often did as a child. “So, who’s the mark?”

Reaper rose a brow at her and chuckled. “What, you wanna go back into that old spat?”

“Eh, I mean, I’m not as into killing people anymore, but if you really want me to,” she teased.

Reaper chuckled before glancing around the corner. “There’s going to be a car accident,” he said as he pointed to an intersection. “Drunk driver. Whole family is going to be wiped out while he only breaks an arm,” he explained heavily. “Mom, dad, three kids.”

Jewel listened to him, feeling bad for the kids. But she let a teasing smirk show. “You know, you really are horrible about this whole natural order thing. You just told me what to expect. I could totally go over and manipulate the scene now. Or was that what you were hoping for?”

Reaper’s eyes went wide and somehow he paled. She was right, she did have the power to manipulate fate. Anyone did that knew about it in advance, but something like this… “You wouldn’t…”

“Eh, you know I would. Go heal the family before they die, go and kill the engine of one of the cars so it doesn’t happen. Hell, go murder the drunk before he gets in his car.”

“Please… little light… we don’t need more of you running around,” he started pleading, despite the fact saving the kids was tempting…

Jewel then chuckled. “Don’t worry. I’ve learned a lot since then. As much as it sucks, it does need to be done,” she said softly. “You want a hand on this one, dad?” she then asked, turning to him. “The kids might take it easier to see a human who can talk to them.”

Reaper stared at her, his soul always fluttered a little when she called him dad. And to think she still considered him as such… “I won’t turn away help, you know that. Means less work for me,” he lazily grinned. But in reality… to have her willing to work with him…

“So, how long until this is supposed to happen?”

Reaper blinked. “Crap, what time is it?” he muttered.

Jewel chuckled, pulling out her phone. “Ten to two.”

Reaper let out a relieved sigh. “We still got fifteen minutes or so,” he explained.

Jewel playfully rolled her eyes at him. “If I didn’t wake you up you would have missed it.”

“I’m sure the crash would have woken me up,” he defended himself, nervously.

Jewel couldn’t help herself as she chuckled at him. “Take a power nap, dad,” she said softly, causing him to look at her confused. “You seem like you need it. I’ll wake you up when it’s time.”

As tempting as that sounded, Reaper couldn’t bring himself to want to sleep. “I just got you back, and you’re telling me to take a nap? No way, I’m not losing you again.”

“Dad, it’s a nap,” she chuckled.

“I’m… still not convinced this isn’t some elaborate dream,” he chuckled nervously. “If I fall asleep… I’ll wake up for real and you’re gone. It’s not like I can touch you to find out if you’re really here, my little light.”

“Then pinch yourself,” she teased him. “I’m not going to go anywhere this time, dad,” she smiled at him. “I can give you my number as proof. You can call me at any point.”

Reaper couldn’t help himself, he felt himself beaming. To have her back after hundreds of years..! “Light, you have no idea how glad I am to hear that.” He pulled a phone out of his robe and Jewel exchanged numbers with him, a quick text test and he could feel his soul feel lighter than it had in years.

“There’s so much to catch up on…” he realized.

“Not a lot has happened with me,” she chuckled. “Trapped in the code and all, nothing to really do.”

“But you’ve obviously changed for the better. I can still feel the weight in your soul, but you’re actively trying to be more like your younger self.”

“I suppose,” she smiled softly. “And I guess a lot has happened in the few months I’ve been in the multiverse with the others.”

“So, you’ve met more than just Error, huh?” he grinned.

“I don’t know how much we can get out in fifteen minutes, but I can try, if you really want.”

Reaper took what he could get. So for the fifteen minutes, while they waited, Jewel explained what had happened to her in vague detail since re-joining the multiverse. How she met Classic and the other Sanses, and some of the hijinks. She didn’t get very far with telling him the negative stuff going on in her life. Nothing about Nightmare or what happened recently. Nothing about Error almost killing her a few times, and the events afterward. He was Death after all and a protective father. He was restrained but against someone like Error? She had her doubts he would restrain himself.

However, as they finished their coffee, the time was coming. Jewel perked her head up as she felt and heard things even Reaper couldn’t.

“Hm?” he called as he took the last swig of his coffee.

“Drunk asshat,” she sighed.

“You can feel that from here?” he rose a brow. “I thought you killed your senses.”

“Been trying to repair them,” she said as she stood up. “And you know I was trying to prevent people from messing with my emotions.”

“Still, you can tell a guy’s drunk by emotion?” he rose a brow. “How sensitive did you get?”

“I used to be a drunk, or did you forget?”

“You weren’t a drunk, you just got drunk,” he corrected her. “Too young.” He shook his head. “Still doesn’t explain this.”

“Eh, we can go over what my powers are now another day. I’ve got a few new tricks,” she chuckled. “But for now, _we_ have to go and do _your_ job,” she smirked at him, teleporting to another rooftop, closer to the intersection.

Reaper blinked. She said she could, but seeing her do it was something else. He smirked and followed after her. When he got there, he saw her finish her coffee and then snap her fingers and saw the cup disappear. He rose a bony brow.

“Heh, can you do that for mine too?” he teased.

“Done then?” When he nodded, she once again snapped her fingers and the cup disappeared.

“Where did you put it?” he asked.

“Recycling,” she chuckled. “Now, let’s see…”

Jewel started to scan the street. Reaper just watched her, a bit amused. He summoned his scythe and leaned on it as he watched her try and figure out what he already knew. It warmed him, honestly. Hell, if he had to die, maybe she could take over his job. He didn’t want to leave it all to his little brother. That would be a hell of a complication, however. And it wasn’t like he was ever going to die. Maybe retire one day… but there was still too much for him to do. She wasn’t a God, she wasn’t eternal… she didn’t have to be immortal, but the fact was, despite whatever trick she used to not age this far, it wouldn’t work if she did this job. Plus, that would pull her from her actual role, wouldn’t it? Well, maybe not…

“Yo, Pops,” he heard her call and he turned to her. “You falling asleep on me?”

“Nah, just thinking. I missed having you around.”

“I missed you too, dad.”

They were taken from their thoughts as they heard the squealing tires before the crunching of metal and the screams of passerby and those in the car. Reaper grimaced as he looked down at the scene. This was never an easy thing to stomach, especially when kids were involved. He hated this with a passion, having to snuff out life so young…

He was taken aback when he saw that Jewel had already left the rooftop and started down below. She kept herself hidden, obviously. Seeing her talking to spirits was something many teased her for as a child, calling her crazy… and she would look crazy to those around. She could not become invisible to mortals as he could. He curiously began to watch. She was taking charge and he wondered what his little light could do.

Jewel stood to the side and waited. She watched as the spirits slowly left the car, one by one, noticing how the parents were oblivious. Of course they were, they were more worried about their children than realizing what was going on. It was always the case… Jewel activated her purity aura, her eyes turning silver. Spirits were more sensitive to it, especially those of children. She waited and the children were the first to see her.

“Mommy… is that… an angel?”

The mother looked over, seeing Jewel glowing white in the alleyway and she started to panic. She looked over at the car with the father and they realized…

“No… no no…” she sobbed.

“Mom…” the oldest looked over, but the baby, started waddling over.

“No!” the dad called out, but as he passed through debris, he started to shake.

“Dear… maybe… maybe we should… she seems… to be waiting…”

Slowly, the family made their way over. The youngest toddled over and Jewel crouched down, offering a finger to the tiny one to hold onto. This little thing couldn’t have been more than three… probably closer to two. It broke her heart but she didn’t let it show as she smiled warmly at the tiny child.

“Hey now, aren’t you brave?” she grinned at the tiny spirit, the baby giggling when he saw her smile.

The mother, father, and the two older children, five and eight roughly, finally made their way over. They looked terrified, and rightfully so.

“A-are you… an angel?” the mother asked.

“Depends on your religion, I suppose,” Jewel smiled as she stood, the baby not wanting to let go of her finger, so she kept bent over a little.

“I thought the Grim Reaper was supposed to meet dead people and steal their souls,” the oldest barked, defensive.

“Well, you certainly seemed to accept your fate faster than most, young man,” Jewel smiled at him.

“We’re dead, what’s the point in arguing it?!” he barked.

“Joshua!” the father scolded, shaking.

“Please, don’t be harsh. Anger is a very valid response. I remember feeling pretty angry too,” Jewel comforted. “But you are not wrong young man. The Grim Reaper is nearby. But he’s not what you think. He’s my dad,” she smiled at him.

“What?” the family looked at her questioningly. “But… I thought?”

“Well, another name for him is the angel of death, yes?” Jewel smiled at the kids, petting the five-year-old. Such sweet kids… “He might look scary, being a skeleton and all, but that’s just because he’s older than dirt,” she grinned, winking at them. “After all, he had to be created before even plants could die. He and Life needed to be around so fruit could be given to animals and all that. Dead plants help spring up new ones.”

“I… never thought of it like that,” the mother said softly.

“But if it’s your dad’s job, why are you here?” the oldest asked.

“Because it’s bring your kid to work day,” Jewel laughed lightly with them. “He’s up there waiting. He’s letting me learn about his job. I might look grown-up, but as far as immortals are concerned, I’m hardly older than this little one here,” she smiled at the youngest. “My dad’s the best though. He’s super sweet and he loves jokes. He just doesn’t get to tell them much to people, they’re a little mad about dying, ya know? But I tell ya, he’s got a skele-ton of them,” she winked at the kids, the older two giggling a little.

The parents offered a wary smile, somehow… not as scared about dying as they thought. She was sweet and comforting… and they weren’t sure why.

“Ready to meet my dad? I promise you’ll like him, he’s really nice.”

“I… suppose so. We’re all together, I suppose that’s what matters most.”

Jewel nodded and stepped back a little. Reaper took his cue and started to walk out. He had summoned his wings, people were a little easier when they saw the feathers, even with the bones forming the frames. He had to have his scythe out, just in case of runners, but he tried to keep it in a non-threatening position. He walked out and kept a lazy smile fixed on his face. After all, Jewel had done all the work of calming them down and even partially numbingly accepting of their fate. He hoped this would go smoothly.

The parents held their scared kids, but the mom couldn’t help herself, she snickered. “I’m sorry,” she apologized. “I imagined you as this tall, imposing figure.”

Reaper chuckled a little. “ _Tibia_ honest, I’m used to that reaction,” he kept the lazy grin. “My little brother’s the taller of us, the one most people think of, but he’s hardly intimidating.”

“Oh, yes, Uncle is the friendliest person you would ever meet! You’ll get to see him soon, right dad? Doesn’t he still help with all the intakes?”

“He sure does,” Reaper smiled before he offered a hand to the family. “I can take you to meet him, and your eternal rest.”

“Ooh, lucky you!” Jewel smiled at them all. “You get to go to heaven.”

Reaper began to lead the family away, the youngest looking back at Jewel as they walked.

“Wait,” the five-year-old spoke up. “Can she come with us?”

“Yes, isn’t she learning your job?” the mother questioned.

“There are some places I’m not allowed because I’m so young,” Jewel explained with a sad smile.

“But…” the child whined.

Reaper glanced back at her, and he smiled a little. “I suppose it wouldn’t hurt to take you at least partially,” he said warmly. “So… little light, are you ready?” he offered. “Just follow closely behind.”

“Right, dad!” Jewel grinned.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ask Responses! Remember, if you have a question for the characters, or me as the author, feel free to leave a question in the comments! I’ll answer them and put them at the end of the chapters like this! If you prefer, I can put them first, but in this case… these need to be and the end here. XD
> 
> https://www.deviantart.com/guardianoftheflame/art/Encoded-Asks-3-Mortality-and-LOVE-842972890
> 
> https://www.deviantart.com/guardianoftheflame/art/Encoded-Asks-4-The-First-Sans-843021338
> 
> https://www.deviantart.com/guardianoftheflame/art/Encoded-Asks-5-Not-So-Multi-versed-843041700


	33. Dusty Shadows

Jewel had just come back from Overtale yet again. Reaper was busy and Ink was out. Sans and Red had the same schedule as Blueberry, so unless she wanted to harass them at work, which they both wouldn’t mind, she was on her own for the moment. She didn’t want to risk Red getting in trouble with Edgy right now. Besides, would it be good for her to be around him when she was already conflicted? She felt bad, but… she didn’t want to be dragged down. Dream was also impossible to track… These damn AU hoppers needed to get a cell phone, damn it. Hell, Reaper had one! Then again, that might have been her influence back in the day. Why would the God of Death need one other than to contact a mortal?

This was what, day three with Blueberry? Time felt like it went so much faster when she was in the AUs. He was adamant she check-in for dinner, spend the night, etc. If she wasn’t going to go back and make up with Error, he wanted her near. She guessed it was admirable, but… Well, she was getting to know Stretch more, and they were getting along. She really had to go talk to Sans. She was feeling so guilty about the whole brother thing now.

But, for now, it was lunchtime. She could have gone back and made food at their house, but damn it, she was craving something she hadn’t had in ages.

“Fuck yes, bless the creators of Overtale. They included McDonald’s damn it!” she praised in her mind as she bit into those beloved golden fries.

Sadly, her heavenly sinful lunch was interrupted by that feeling of being stalked. Oh great, what now?

She was sitting in a tree as to not get wet from the snow. She shouldn’t be able to get ambushed up here. But it was that familiar feeling. A predator was around. Well, she was hardly prey anymore. She threw her food back in the bag and began to look around.

Despite her skill, a teleporting enemy always had the option of surprise. She tensed as she suddenly had a glowing red eye from a salivating skeleton in her face, pouncing on her to push her down. She teleported to be closer to the ground so the impact wouldn’t hurt. She had an arm under his neck, keeping him at bay. The parallels to a rabid animal were running through her as he clawed and bit. The thought of using magic apparently seemed lost to him in this state. Or… was he running out of it?

Jewel could blast him, knock him away… but his LV was high and a barrier was out of the question. Instead, she acted on instinct, as he was apparently. She grabbed the burger from her food bag, now laying in the snow, and quickly shoved it in the gaping maw that tried to take bite after bite out of her.

The second that the burger hit his mouth, the skeleton seemed to stop and focus on the food he had been given. Jewel was able to teleport out from under him and stand up. He ravenously tore into the small burger, and before he was done, Jewel tossed him the rest of her bag. She only had one burger and fries… She was going to need more.

Horror slowly found himself again, the fog in his mind lifting just a bit as he felt something he hadn’t in years. He tasted the ketchup on the burger and he just craved it so much more. Years of starvation, fasting… and it was gone, like that… but the feeling was still there. He looked to the bag that had been tossed on the ground. He hesitantly opened it up, finding fries and ketchup packets inside. Flashbacks began to ring through of happier times. Times of Grillby’s good food. He couldn’t help himself as he dove in, devouring the fries in seconds before ripping open the ketchup packets like a desperate animal, sucking every last drop out before ripping them open and licking the packets clean.

Even then, he was still hungry. Still craving food. He desperately looked in the bag for anything, taking bits of crumbs that had fallen out of the fry box, little bits of salt. Somewhere, he knew he must look undignified, but it was the first time he had any real food and he couldn’t help himself. He lost his fight with his hunger… and someone gave into him before he could regain himself.

As the hunger pain grew, something in him made him remember that he had a mission. He was supposed to… no, and she got away! He got so distracted she escaped! He was going to get it for this, he—!

He glanced back as Jewel stood there once again, having returned… with more food. More McDonald’s, but it was fast and cheap. And he was a Sans, so… she had something else for him too. Instead of being terrified of the raging beast he was, she cautiously walked toward him with the food in hand.

“Easy there, Sans,” she called out to him, her voice soft and gentle. “I have more, just… stay calm okay?”

Horror couldn’t stop the drool that escaped past his teeth, running down his chin and into the snow. He could even feel some trickle back to his neck and go down his vertebrae. But somehow he didn’t move. He just watched her with that red, glowing eye. He watched her dig into the bag and pull out another burger. He felt himself salivate even more. He watched as she cautiously extended her arm to him. That was a stupid move, he could easily rip it off! But that burger called his name… he could practically hear it. He refused to eat human meat for a reason, but a burger… well…

The skeleton snatched the burger quickly from her hand and ripped the wrapper to shreds, getting it off and just scarfing it down.

“Easy,” Jewel called out to him. “You don’t have a throat, but I swear, I feel like you’re going to choke,” she said worriedly.

The words fell on deaf ears as Horror just continued to destroy whatever came in contact with his mouth. He ripped the bag from her hand once again and just started shoving everything in his mouth at once. It really was a dangerous thing. Skeleton or not, eating that much so fast was not good for him.

He felt arms wrap around him, holding his arms down at his sides and pulling him back up from the food pile he had been hunched over. His eye sockets widened as someone dared to embrace him, especially when in a food frenzy. Then he felt the caress on his skull.

“Sssh,” he heard, somehow, the urge to rip her arms off subsiding, “It’s okay. Take your time, don’t get sick. I’ll get you more, Sans, just… don’t hurt yourself.”

Somehow, the words got through the fog. The crazed look in his eye slowly faded as some semblance of self returned to the insane skeleton. He looked back at her with that red eye, his mouth still stuffed with food. Slowly, he chewed what he had, pulling the hanging food into his maw before doing something resembling swallowing.

“There we go,” she softly cooed. She looked at the brittle bones on his skull, wincing a little internally. She slowly started to let him go, but his hand grabbed her arm. It gripped tightly, but he didn’t claw at it, he didn’t yank it.

“The hell is wrong with you?” he asked slowly. “I try and eat you, and you try and hug me??”

She shrugged a little. “Just... felt like what I should do.”

He stared at her as she started to pull back. Why wasn’t he..? He glanced down at the food once again. He felt himself salivating once again, but he kept his mind as Jewel held another burger in front of him.

“Try slower bites, you won’t get sick. If you’re still hungry after all of this, I’ll go get more, okay?”

Horror couldn’t believe what he was hearing. He took the burger, looking at it hesitantly. “What… the hell is any of this anyway?” he cautiously asked.

“Human food,” she shrugged.

He dropped the burger, shaking a little. “I-I was eating…? You fed me humans?!” he barked at her.

She blinked rapidly. “What? No! It’s just food from the surface. It’s not magic, and technically made out of animals, but it’s not made of human meat. I’m not a cannibal. I mean, you kind of stole my lunch there. That in particular is made out of a cow.”

Horror’s quaking hand gripped the burger. He remembered the smell putting him over the edge. He lost control… she sacrificed her lunch for her life, smart. Did he feel bad about it? She was taking all this time to feed him… why? What the hell was her game?

She went into the bag she still held, he only grabbed the one. She held out a bottle of ketchup in front of him. “This is something you’re well-acquainted with, right? I mean, you’re still a Sans. You still like ketchup?”

Horror’s eyes widened as he saw the familiar red bottle. He grabbed for it like it was a treasure, pulling it close to him. He wanted to devour it, but at the same time, he kind of wanted to save it. When was the next time he was going to get ketchup?

Jewel couldn’t help but chuckle. “So, what are you here for?” she asked in a more serious tone. “This obviously isn’t your AU and you’re not an AU hopper.”

“How would you know?”

“Trust my gut,” she said, before reaching in the bag and taking some french fries, nibbling on them.

Horror had to fight the urge to rip her arm off. It was her food, after all, she was just… Damn it, he couldn’t be mad at her for long. He attacked her and she freaking fed him! That was more than anyone had done. He supposed he should be straight with her.

“Nightmare sent me,” he said as he grabbed the burger again, unwrapping it and took a normal bite. It was so hard to keep a normal pace, he wanted to tear it to shreds in his teeth. “He wants to meet with you.”

She rose a brow at the unexpected turn of events. “He… wants to talk? Why do I find that hard to believe?”

Horror shrugged, before he lost his composure and just tore into the burger until it was gone. He licked the ketchup off of his fingers that dripped from it. “Believe it or not, he doesn’t lie. Cold mother fucker, won’t blink when he hurts you, but he doesn’t lie.”

“That’s a weird character trait for someone in his position.”

The ravenous skeleton shrugged, reaching in and sharing fries with her. This was surprisingly calming. “He wants to spread misery to power himself. Don’t need to lie for that.”

“True,” Jewel said, thinking about it. It helped though. She would know. “So… what exactly does he want from me?”

A shrug was what she received as an answer. “He doesn’t tell me anything,” he admitted. “Just told me to extend the offer to you. He’d probably dust me if he knew I lost control simply because you were having lunch.”

“Well, I suppose we can keep this between us,” she smiled at him.

Horror froze mid-bite, fry almost between his teeth as he stared back at her. “Why would you do that?” he asked.

She shrugged. “I get being hangry.”

He stared at her for several minutes before he suddenly burst out laughing, actually falling back into the snow. This human was so stupid! But he couldn’t be mad at her! He was in too good of a mood! It had been years since he had eaten and he just… felt so fucking happy!

“It’s been over nine years since I had anything to eat!” he told her while laughing. “Hangry barely covers it!”

Jewel blinked rapidly. “Holy shit! Dude, that’s rough! Why the hell has it been that long?”

Horror sat back up, unable to help the smile on his face. “Core malfunctioned in my world. No more food. Took to having to hunt the humans who fell to feed Snowdin. It messes with you though. I don’t… I need to stay in control to make sure my brother gets fed.”

Jewel listened, tilting her head. “I’m not surprised. There are plenty of stories of humans turning to Wendigoes once they turn cannibal.”

“Wendigoes?” he questioned.

“Kind of an undead monster, more zombie-like than anything. But successful ones lose the flesh around their mouth and claws, becoming more skeletal over time. Some are depicted with deer-like antlers for some reason,” she shrugged. “Never personally seen one. It’s supposed to be a monster that can only come from a human turning cannibal, so I doubt they exist in the Underground. But it also states they’re never satisfied from a meal. They’re always hungry.”

“Heh, I can relate,” he said darkly. Only… “It’s so weird… I don’t… feel hungry anymore…”

“Well, you did just eat enough food for about five people,” Jewel chuckled a little. “You know,” she started, her tone more serious. “You don’t have to keep going hungry like that. I’ll get you food whenever.”

Horror stared at her. “What the fuck is wrong with you? I’m on Nightmare’s side, ya know! Yet you’re offering to feed me?”

“I don’t do politics,” Jewel shrugged. “I’m not going to judge you based on the company you keep. Besides, I don’t hate Nightmare.”

He stared blankly at her. “You don’t?”

“Nope. Don’t trust him, but don’t hate him. He’s got some bad marks against him, but he hasn’t crossed that line yet. I get his actions more than I’d like to admit. So… speaking of the goopy octopus,” she trailed off a little. “Where is he?”

“At his castle. He’s waiting for my signal to open a rift to get us.”

Ugh. So she didn’t stop him from sending people… at least he couldn’t come, she hoped. But she also couldn’t just go there if she didn’t know where it was.

“Fine,” Jewel sighed. She wasn’t going to get lunch anyway. “Whenever you’re ready.”

Horror blinked at her. “Really? Just like that? Even after what you did to Dust?”

She rose a brow. “What did I do to him?”

He stared at her. “You don’t… remember? You shattered his sternum, cracked his soul.”

She visibly paled. “I… no, I… did I really hit him that hard? Oh fuck.” Her hand went through her hair as she thought back to that day. It had been over a week. “Is he going to be there?” she then asked. “I need to try and make this right!”

His red eye grew in size as he watched her panic over the injury she caused. It was so strange. She was worried over what she did when she was fighting them? She wasn’t going to fit in at all. Why did Nightmare want her? She might be strong, but… damn, this wasn’t going to work. He couldn’t feed off of this.

“He… should be?” he rose a brow at her. “He’s still pretty sore about the whole thing, I doubt he’s going to let you help.”

Still, she had to try. “We should get going, I need to fix this.”

Horror sighed, before looking down at the food. He quickly scarfed what was left before standing up, that bottle of ketchup going in his inner coat pocket. He noticed Jewel get up and just stood by him. Like he wasn’t a dangerous psychopath who might just rip her to shreds. Granted, right now, he probably wouldn’t. He wasn’t hungry… such a weird feeling… he was… content.

He gave the signal, hiding it from Jewel and a dark portal opened up in front of them. He glanced back, thinking she would hesitate. Instead, he saw her walking straight toward it.

“You coming, Sans?” she then asked, looking back at him.

He blinked. It felt… weird to have his real name be used after so long in Nightmare’s service. Only his own world ever called him that. “It’s Horror,” he corrected her.

“Really?” she questioned, her voice soft and genuine. “You really don’t seem like a horror monster to me.”

“Heh, you don’t know me,” he countered her. But… for some reason, what she said… he quickly shook the feeling off.

“Well… let’s get going,” she said as she headed into the portal.

Horror watched her go, just diving in. “Either she’s brave, or stupid,” he muttered before following her inside.

On the other side of the portal, Jewel found herself inside the main hall of a large castle. It seemed Victorian almost, medieval. There were a lot of different architecture types that confused her so she couldn’t pinpoint exactly what era it was based on… or where they were. But she was there now…

“It seems my messenger was successful,” Nightmare lulled as he saw who came out of his portal, sitting upon his throne at the end of the hall.

Horror slipped through after Jewel, just standing back. He sort of hid behind Jewel. He had this fear in the back of his mind that Nightmare could tell he had eaten, that he had messed up. He kept his gaze on the ground until he heard footsteps, seeing Jewel move closer to the King of Darkness. She truly didn’t have any hesitation with him. Was she stupid?

Jewel walked all the way up to the throne, standing just below the staircase that led up to it. Nightmare rose a brow, his crown resting upon his head. He didn’t move, but his leg did slide from his casually crossed position to flat on the ground. He shifted to make it seem like he was looking down at her, not getting ready to have to move quickly. She had gotten closer to destroying him than even Dream, and Dream had destroyed part of his body before. His positivity arrows could do some damage if he was charged enough. It was just his luck his brother didn’t realize his true potential. It was why he had to feed. And this woman… well… it infuriated him that she somehow cut him off to where he couldn’t even sense it anymore.

“You were the one who wanted to see me,” she drawled, looking up at him with a bored expression.

It irked him to no end. This woman had such disdain for him. But that made things interesting. “Yes, I suppose it was rude of me to not welcome you first,” he tried, keeping up the façade.

“You can spare the fake formalities, Night. Why are you wanting to talk to me?”

“Night, huh?” he glowered at her. “So casual with an enemy, aren’t you?”

Jewel then laughed a little. “You consider me an enemy? Then why the fuck did you invite me to your home?”

“I don’t,” he clarified. “I assumed you did.”

She laughed a little, surprising both monsters in the room. “Dude, no. I don’t consider you my enemy.”

Nightmare let his confusion slip through onto his face, tilting his head. “You’ve admitted you’ve talked with Dream.”

“Yeah, I have. And he’s a nice guy and all. But I don’t do politics. So long as you leave my friends alone, I don’t really care.” She casually put her hands in her pockets, looking up at him. “You’re dangerous, and I’m not stupid. I’ll keep you a good distance. Same goes with all those under your banner.” She glanced back at Horror as if reading his mind. “But I’m not about to turn anyone away simply because of what’s been done in the past. It’d be hypocritical as hell,” she said as she glanced back to Nightmare. “I’m sure you felt it during our first meeting.”

“I certainly did,” he said, looking at her with a judging eye. His irritation was turning into fascination. “Tell me… why can’t I feel your negativity anymore?” he tried to pry. She seemed to have a loose tongue as it was.

“Heh, my little secret,” she winked at him. “You won’t get a free meal off of me. I know how you work after all. Sorry bud, but we’re not friends. You don’t get to know privileged information.”

His eye narrowed slightly as his smile turned into a frown. Irritation was starting to spark in him again. “I assume you’ve told Dream, then?”

She shrugged. She wasn’t going to give him much. He could enjoy not knowing certain aspects of her life. That irritation was kind of fun to see on his face. “So… gonna tell me why you called me here or not?”

Nightmare rose, slowly walking down the steps, stopping a few steps from the bottom so he was at least close to her eye level as they spoke. “I wanted to extend an invitation to join us,” he spoke plainly.

“You’re joking, right?” she rose a brow. “I just told you I don’t do politics. You’re asking me to pick a side?”

“The winning side,” he smirked at her. “You should know that misery truly rules the world. With that much negativity, you’ve seen what the world is truly like.”

There was no denying that… Jewel let out an annoyed sigh. “Look, here’s the facts, my friends aren’t fans of yours. I’m not abandoning them for you, I don’t even know you.”

Nightmare honestly didn’t expect that answer. The look of bewilderment on his face was rather amusing to Horror. But she was loyal, that could be worked with. She wasn’t outright denying his request. That left him room…

“But you’re friends with Error,” Nightmare spoke up after regaining his composure. “No other reason he would come snooping around my territories while trying to avoid me. He’s trying to protect you from me. It would be quite sweet if it wasn’t so pathetically obvious. And the other Sans he came with, the one from Underfell. I’ve tried recruiting him as well. I’m certain they wouldn’t abandon you for choosing the right side. In fact, Error’s already apart of this, I’m sure the other could easily be convinced to join you.”

So he knew about Error, huh? And Error… oh great, went right back to that right now. She did not need that. Not right now. She groaned a little at his obvious attempt at manipulation. “Dude, first off, you think I don’t know this shit?” she rose a brow. “But more importantly, I’m friends with Dream, and his friends.”

“And do they truly accept what you are?” he rose a brow.

“Yes!” she barked at him, causing him to look confused. “Dude, I get your whole shtick, okay? I used to be like you. All of you. Well…” she glanced back at Horror, “Maybe not you per se,” she sweated a little, causing Horror to chuckle. He couldn’t help himself. But she turned back to Nightmare. “Look, I don’t hate you, Nightmare. I’m not afraid of you. But I know what you are. You’re someone who is out for themselves and will do whatever it takes to get what you want in the long run. You’re dangerous and I know how to respect that. The question is, do you?”

Nightmare stared at her for a moment. He felt his tentacles moving behind him, itching to just grab at her. But instead he took those few steps down, allowing himself to be lower than her, looking up at her as he stood in front of her. “You’ve got a power I haven’t seen. You’ve done more to me than anyone. I do respect that, it is why I’m offering you a place here.”

Jewel looked down at him. She didn’t have any ill intent in her eyes, not even remotely any negative feelings associated with his offer. However… “You attacked my friend, Nightmare. I’ve been in your spot, believe me. I’ve had my own gang that I used for my purposes. They had skills I could use, but I didn’t trust them. I don’t do things like that anymore. I have to trust someone I align myself with. And you’ve done plenty to me, personally, where trust is going to be hard to come by for you.”

He felt a smirk pull at his lips, chuckling a little. “That’s all? After what has happened, I expected you to have more resistance to my offer than that. How about…” he drawled a little, lifting his hand up, offering a handshake, “you take the time you need to think it over. So long as you are alone, I’ll allow you to come and you can see for yourself what we do here.”

“A deal, huh?” she rose a brow. “That’s very much in your favor. And again, I don’t trust you.”

“So, what are your stipulations then?” he asked.

Jewel thought about it. Was she really considering this? “First, you leave my friends and their worlds alone. That includes your brother, no hunting him down.”

“I cannot avoid Dream, he makes it his mission to interfere with mine,” he countered.

“I said no hunting him down. You two are going to fight, that much is certain. Brothers do that, especially polar opposites like you two. As much as I rather no one gets hurt, I know it’s not always the case. But I expect you not to do too much damage to him. You’re also not going to get angry with me for tending to his injuries. If I happen to be around, I will intervene to stop the fight and I expect you to leave it at that.”

“You expect me to leave a world just because you’re there?”

“I expect you to not engage with me. You’re trying to earn my trust, yes? Because if you engage and I’m forced to pick a side, it’s always going to be Dream’s as it stands right now.”

He supposed that was fair. He wanted her on his side, not against him. That was a fight he was not looking forward to engaging in. “Anything else?”

“No one knows we had this discussion. And I want you to get Dust in here.”

“Easily acceptable… by why Dust? He’s not quite… in the mood to meet with you.”

“Just… call him.”

“Very well,” he shrugged. A wave of negativity shot forth and Horror flinched a little at it. It ran through the halls, disappearing down corridors.

Silence filled the hall as they waited. Horror felt like a third wheel, an unwanted fly on the wall. But he hadn’t been dismissed yet. And soon, there would be another…

“Ya called?” Dust droned as he walked out of one of the adjoining halls. He stopped and froze as he saw the human standing there with Nightmare, his eye starting to flare up with magic.

“You will restrain yourself,” Nightmare hissed, his voice commanding and with a force that seemed to echo in the hall.

“B-but—!” Dust began to protest, but Nightmare’s eye pierced through him.

“Our _guest_ ,” he emphasized, “has requested your presence and you will accommodate her needs.”

“And… what might that be?” Dust hesitantly asked, his cautious and narrowed gaze not leaving her.

Jewel slowly walked over to him. She wasn’t radiating that crazy aura she had before, but Dust wasn’t going to lower his guard around this psychotic bitch.

“Show me your wound.”

Dust felt a bit of blue dust his cheeks. “What?! No!” he barked, before he caught Nightmare’s gaze, his eye glowing as he threatened him with tentacles stretched.

“Nightmare, please,” Jewel spoke up, causing Dust to look up at her confused. “Stop threatening him. He has every right to be hesitant of me.” It surprised him when Jewel then knelt down, getting down to his height. “I apologize for what I did,” she then started, surprising all three skeletons in the room. “I honestly did not mean to strike you as hard as I did. It was uncalled for. I forget how strong I can be sometimes, especially against a skeleton. Nightmare was a refreshing change, in all honesty. He had such resistance, and I suppose I struck with that resistance still in mind. I would like to try and make up for that if you will allow me to.”

Dust was utterly speechless. “How?” was the only thing he could think to respond.

“Please, allow me to examine the wound.”

Dust was highly hesitant. Why should he trust his soul to anyone? Granted, she could just grab for it now, she already pierced through him before. He glanced between Horror and Nightmare, neither really offering any support in the matter.

“Fine,” he muttered. What did he have to lose?

He lifted his shirt. From right underneath his collarbone and more than halfway through his ribcage, his sternum was gone, with the ribs around it fractured and gone, little shards barely holding together. He had been trying to will it to grow back, but… his soul was still cracked and damaged as well.

Jewel looked at the injury with a critical eye. She really did a number on him… this… normally wouldn’t grow back… but she could do something… the problem was… how to do it without letting them know? She began to think. Well, at least she could start on it.

When she lifted her hand to go near his chest, he flinched back, taking several steps and dropping his shirt. “The fuck do you think you’re doing?!”

“Trying to fix it.”

“Like hell! No healing magic is going to do shit to that!”

“You haven’t seen mine.”

“Bullshit! Healers are all the same!” Dust shouted back at her, his purple magic swirling in his socket.

“Dust!” Nightmare boomed, causing the skeleton to flinch a little. “I have offered to let her _join_ us. There is nothing wrong with her attempting to try and heal you. If nothing happens, she will simply have wasted her time.”

He didn’t like this. He didn’t trust her! Why should he?! She was human after all! Look at what she did to him! It was as bad as all the times that damn kid murdered him, time and time again. He should just kill her right now! If he could get past LV20, he’d be able to give Nightmare a run for his money!

“Dust,” she called out gently, her tone completely the opposite of what he was expecting. Nightmare was commanding him, he was thinking murder, and yet she was soft and gentle? Fuck that shit!

“Oh, fuck you! You do this to me and think you can just--!”

She grabbed his hand, he flinched, but he couldn’t get free. She had a grip on him, yet she wasn’t squeezing or pulling.

“Shut the fuck up and let me help you god damn it,” she hissed at him.

That tone was more what he was used to. He rose a brow. That was a sudden change. “The fuck?”

“Would you rather walk around with a hole in your chest, vulnerable for the rest of your life, or swallow your damn pride for three minutes and let me fucking fix you?”

Dust glared at her, but she had a valid point, finally. He growled, ripping his arm from her as she let him go, but he didn’t move. “Fine,” he hissed.

“Don’t move,” she warned him before she moved closer.

Dust rolled his eyes at her, but he watched as her own turned silver. He hadn’t really paid much attention during the battle to notice the silver before. He felt her hand return to his chest, hovering over the wound. He had to admit this felt weird and even weirder that he was letting her near his soul. He could feel the magic there as well and he wanted to fight… but he could also feel the strain on it ebbing. He fought the urge to smack her away. At least she was able to fix his soul, he supposed… but the ribs? No way in hell.

After a moment, she started to rise, looming over him a little as her hand shifted, going into the center of the hole she created.

“W-what--!” he started to protest.

“Stand still,” she interrupted. “This is already going to be uncomfortable, you move and you’re going to hurt worse.”

“F-fuck off!” he struggled, but she simply grabbed him, holding him against her with one arm. He struggled, fighting before the pain got to him. Clenching his teeth, he doubled over into her, his entire body trembling.

Horror, seeing his friend in trouble, started running toward them, but he was stopped by tentacles as Nightmare appeared just enough in front of him. He simply shook his head and Horror knew he was stuck, just watching this. Dust was so small compared to her, they all were. Doubled over him like that, they couldn’t see anything aside his legs peeking out past hers.

After a moment of this, Jewel pulled back, panting just a bit as her eyes faded back to blue.

Dust collapsed to his knees, holding his chest. As he panted, however, he pushed gently against his ribs, slowly realizing… he pulled his collar back and looked down his shirt, eyes wide.

“Y-you… actually did it?” he asked astonishingly.

“Told you… don’t underestimate me,” she muttered. “You’re lucky, you were in the window to allow me to do that. Much longer and the bones would have scarred over fully. That’s why it hurt. Wouldn’t have been so bad if you kept still, dumbass,” she scolded.

Horror took it as a sign things were done, running past Nightmare and her to go check on Dust. He gave him a hand up, gently feeling where the hole had been. Dust angrily slapped his hand away. “Don’t fucking touch me,” he growled.

“He’s right, you really shouldn’t,” Jewel countered. “The bone’s still soft, it’ll take a while to harden up. Don’t let anything hit you in the chest, and don’t sleep on your stomach for a while.”

Dust glared at her. “And how long is “a while”?”

“Depends on how quickly you heal. I’d say about two to three weeks to be on the safe side. Not that I expect you to listen to doctor’s orders.”

Nightmare couldn’t help but chuckle a little. This was amusing. “That’s enough,” he declared. “Dust, Horror, you’re dismissed.”

“You really wanna be alone with this bitch?” Dust questioned.

“We have an agreement to finish up,” he said dismissively. As the two left, Nightmare turned to the human in his company. “There was part of my bargain. I must say, I’m surprised. You just negated a weakness in my forces you could have exploited.”

“It shouldn’t have gotten that far to begin with. Besides, he’s been through enough. I don’t need to add to it.”

Nightmare rose a brow. “That is a surprising statement. Though, you knew of Dust during our last meeting. Do you know my others?”

“Eh, not really,” she admitted. “I know Dust because I’ve come across his AU before, one of the few I really paid attention to.”

Nightmare hummed softly as he contemplated this information. He knew she hopped through AUs, finding her in two different ones. She was also friends with Ink… he just assumed Dream or Error had told her enough, but it seemed like he was wrong. Perhaps this was something he could play to.

“Well, I believe we have our conditions. You will contemplate my offer, neither of us will speak of this. You are welcome here and I will not instigate with any within your circle.”

“And retreat.”

Nightmare sighed. “And retreat. I will not engage in a _full_ battle.”

Jewel sighed a little. “Fine.”

Nightmare looked to her, offering her his hand. “I will not burn you,” he promised.

Jewel eyed him, but took his hand, sealing the deal with a handshake.

“I do expect you to make an effort to appear here. If not I will send one of my companions after you to check up on you.”

“Don’t blame me if you’re not here.”


	34. Amends

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> More Asks have been answered! Feel free to ask the characters anything in the comments or on my DA or Tumblr!
> 
> https://www.deviantart.com/guardianoftheflame/art/Undertale-Encoded-Ask-Us-Anything-842629548
> 
> https://rainingjewel.tumblr.com/post/618664352192561152/undertale-encoded-is-on-fanfictionnet-and-ao3
> 
> Asks:
> 
> https://www.deviantart.com/guardianoftheflame/art/Encoded-Asks-6-Favorites-844381411
> 
> https://www.deviantart.com/guardianoftheflame/art/Encoded-Asks-7-Banana-844388870
> 
> https://www.deviantart.com/guardianoftheflame/art/Encoded-Asks-8-Annoyances-845031772
> 
> https://www.deviantart.com/guardianoftheflame/art/Encoded-Asks-9-Classics-845047484

# Chapter 34 – Amends

It was a boring day… well, not so boring. The kid reset again… apparently something wasn’t going right during the timeline… Sans was anxious, he couldn’t tell which run this was going to be… The kid hadn’t exited the ruins yet… He was trying to be lazy, take a nap… after all he barely got any sleep the night before. The last time, he only got out of it because of Jewel… Was he going to lose Papyrus again?

He clawed at his skull as these thoughts started rushing through him, his sockets darkening until his eyelights were gone. He started to lose himself to the thoughts, the flashbacks. Tears were starting to build up as stress ate away at his very core.

A touch was all it took to set off the chain reaction. He was wound up, ready to explode. Feeling something touch his back that shouldn’t have, he lashed out, bones flying, blasters ready to fire, before his sockets focused on who exactly it was.

His bones shattered against a faintly white barrier that had erected around the front of her, Jewel staring almost blankly at his reaction.

“Oh, god, Jewel! I’m so sorry!” he started to panic, his blasters disappearing, what was left of his bones fading away. The blue in his eye faded and snuffed out.

“Relax, nothing happened,” she tried to soothe him.

  
When her hand touched his skull, Sans leaned into it, starting to shake. “It’s not okay, I almost…”

“Well, it wouldn’t be the first time,” she off-handedly commented.

“Don’t! Don’t do that!” His tremors got worse.

“Hey,” she said softly as she leaned in, hugging him and trying to ease his shaking. He could feel the small bag she held in her hand against his back. “I’m sorry,” she whispered.

Sans gripped her tightly, leaning into her as she held him. Jewel rubbed his back as she felt him shake, his bones almost rattling as he did. It was such a strange sound…

“Sans, what’s got you so worked up?”

It took him a minute to regain his ability to talk as he just trembled. He had so much stress built up that even talking seemed like too much at this point. “The kid… reset mid-pacifist…”

“Oh… Oh, jeez…” Jewel muttered a little. “It’s… Papyrus is he..?”

“Not yet,” he muttered as she slowly pulled back, but he didn’t look up at her. “The ruins haven’t opened yet…”

Jewel sighed a little, glancing back down the path. “Want me to go take a peek?” she offered.

Sans shivered a little. “You’d think after all the time here, I’d know how to actually get in there,” he muttered. “But I’ve never been. The doors never stay open…”

“It’s okay, I can get in.”

“But what if the kid sees you?”

She shrugged. “Technically, you shouldn’t know I exist either, but here we are.”

“But what if…” he started to trail off, his eyes darkening again.

Jewel sighed a little. “All right. I’ll go the long way.”

She moved to hop up on his sentry stand, sitting on the counter. She put the bag down as she opened up a window of code. She started opening up others around it, causing her to groan a little.

“What… are you doing?” Sans couldn’t help but question.

“You don’t want me to go in, right? Well, now I gotta dig if you want an answer. I hate you,” she teased the last bit, sticking her tongue out at him.

Sans couldn’t help but chuckle a little, a hint of nervousness in his voice. “Sorry, I just… I’ve almost lost you so many times already and…”

Jewel stopped, moving the windows to the side so she can look at him. “I know. And it doesn’t help I take my own mortality so casually. I’m sorry, I really can’t help it. I’m… not used to so many people caring about what happens to me.”

Sans picked up her small bag and hopped up with her on the desk portion of his stand, looking up at her. “I saw, remember?” he told her, putting a hand over hers. “I know it’s a habit, but it’s one you should break. You’re not alone anymore.”

“Yeah, I know,” she said softly, her thumb grabbing his fingers as it continued to lay over her own hand. “It’s… starting to really sink in. And I haven’t been very fair to a lot of you while figuring that out.”

“Is that what this is?” he asked, looking to the bag. “You trying to buy me off?” he teased a little.

Jewel chuckled a bit. “Well… it’s… something I thought might be appreciated.”

Sans couldn’t help it, he was a curious bonehead. He let her go to open the bag, revealing… a cheese grater. He looked utterly confused.

“Heh, sorry. Just my _cheesy_ way of trying to tell you how _grate_ you really are.”

Sans couldn’t stop the laughter as she got him good. “O-oh gouda!”

Jewel grinned at him a little. “Well, I have a _pun_ tastic _munster_ to _ketchup_ to.”

Sans couldn’t help it, he snorted as he tried to breathe, leaning into her as he grabbed her arm to keep himself from falling off the counter.

Jewel chuckled a little as he laughed, gently rubbing his back as he tried to regain his breath. “Okay, I’ll stop.”

“Nah, nah,” he still laughed, breathless in his words. “It’s good, I needed that.” He coughed as his breathing slowly came back to normal. “Didn’t know you were that into puns,” he grinned a little at her.

“Eh, well… we haven’t really spent much time together,” she admitted. “Most of the time I’m here, I’m hurt. And we kind of argue…” she rubbed the back of her neck.

“Yeah… I’m… sorry, about all of that,” Sans said as he sobered up from the jokes. “I was…”

“Trying to be a big brother,” she finished for him, making him look up at her. “We barely knew each other and you were trying to protect me, and I got mad at you for it. I’m the one who should be apologizing, not you, Sans. I think the problem was that I just… wasn’t ready for it. I mean...”

“It’s okay,” Sans reassured as he put a hand on her shoulder. “I’m so used to dealing with Paps. He’s easier to guide into doing what I want him to do. I can’t expect everyone to just listen to me like he does. Even if they remind me of him a little.”

Jewel then snickered a little. “How the hell do I remind you of Papyrus? I’m nothing like him.”

“Well, not in backstory, no,” Sans chuckled a little with her. “But, when we met, all I saw was someone willing to help, no matter what. You believe in Error like he’s going to change. Papyrus is the same way. It gets him killed all the time…” he said softly.

“I… suppose I see why my trust in Error put you off.”

“Yeah, a bit,” he rubbed his neck. “But he has changed… I can see it. The way he is with you, even if no one else… he genuinely cares about you, and it was refreshing to see. I didn’t… have any business telling you what to do in regards to him.”

“Sure you did. You were trying to look out for me with what you knew at the time. And I do make excuses,” she admitted. “I’m sure Papyrus does too.”

“Oh yeah,” he chuckled softly, a hint of sadness in his voice. “People make fun of him and he doesn’t even fully realize it.”

“I think he probably does,” Jewel spoke up. “He’s just either trying to convince you not to go after them or try and twist it for himself so he can move past it.”

Sans rose a brow. “You haven’t even met him yet.”

“Yeah, but I know the main timeline,” she reminded him. “And I do know Blueberry. He’s very aware of people staring at him, and lied to Stretch about it.”

Sans paled a little. Papyrus lying to him about that? “You… think Paps lies to me about stuff like that?”

“I can’t really say. I haven’t caught him in one. But you lie to him, right? It’s just something siblings do to keep the other from worrying. Besides, there are some key differences between your Papyrus and Blue that may affect different things in their personalities and behaviors.”

“Like what? He seems pretty much like Paps to me.”

“Well, for one, Blue’s manipulative,” she said, looking down at Sans who seemed surprised.

“I know you called him out on Error, but… I thought it was just the puppy eyes routine.”

“Blue’s cute and he knows it. It’s easier for him to manipulate Stretch, since, ya know, little brother and all, but he does it to get his way a lot. He’s tried it with me, but being the heartless bitch I am, I’m immune to the puppy eyes,” she playfully joked.

“You would be,” he chuckled softly.

“Plus, pretty sure he’s an empath.”

Sans blinked and looked over at her. “You think Blueberry is like you?”

“Well, I think he can read emotion better than most of you,” she admitted. “He’s not going to have special powers like me, but his reading ability is pretty impressive. Plus, when he’s with me, and Dream, I can sense him trying to force his positivity into us. He’s doing it wrong, but he’s trying and I think he could manipulate people’s emotions if he knew how. I’ve been watching him more, testing with certain things and I’m pretty positive at this point. Going to have to sit him down when my mind’s in the game.”

Sans looked at her with a little concern growing behind his eyes. “Not in the game? You okay?”

“I suppose,” she shrugged. “Just… been dealing with some stuff. Lot of self-reflecting.”

“Is it because of what we saw?” he asked. “Ya know, I’m a pretty decent wall to talk to, especially when I’m sleepin’,” he grinned a bit at her.

Jewel chuckled a little. “I’m sure,” she dismissed, but she kept a small smile. “I actually do want to talk to you. I really am sorry for how I acted before. You were just trying to be my friend and I acted horribly. I lashed out at you and I shouldn’t have. If you still want to be my brother… I’m okay with that. Just… give me time to adjust to being the younger sibling, eh?” she smiled at him. “Though you really should be the younger one, I’m older than you.”

Sans was stunned as he listened. She wanted to be his sister? Really? He felt his soul swell up a little, but he wasn’t about to let that age thing slide. “Jewel, I don’t even know how old I am anymore with all the resets,” he grinned at her. “But I’m pretty sure I’m older than you when this whole thing started, you look pretty young.”

She laughed. “Well, looks can be deceiving.”

“Really?” he rose a brow, teasingly challenging. “I was twenty-nine when all this started to go down.”

Jewel chuckled. “Well, you want the long or the short answer?” she teased him.

“Oh there’s only one answer to how old you are.”

She stuck her tongue out at him. “I’m over three-hundred, bonehead.”

The muse in his face faded as he stared at her, disbelieving. “You’re pulling my leg, right?”

Jewel sweated a little. “Nope, sorry dude. I mean, I’ve been in the time stream for thirty-one years that I can recall, give or take some days or months. But most of my life I lived outside of time and space inside of the code, so…”

Sans tried to process this information. Slowly, his mind caught up to him. “Well… I guess I understand you not wanting to be the younger sibling… I mean, hell… even normally you’d be older than me,” he realized.

Jewel chuckled. “Well, how about we just be siblings, no elder, or younger, just… be there, eh? Respect that we can’t tell each other what to do, but the advice and all that.”

Sans looked up at her and smiled. “Yeah, I can live with that.” He leaned in as she wrapped her arm around him and he rested his skull against her arm. He was so tired, none of this really helped, but it was a load off of his mind. He was still stressed about this reset, but… well, this was good news for a change. “So what made you change your mind?”

“I’ve been feeling kind of guilty about it for a while,” she admitted softly. “I just… with everything going on lately, it seems… Well, I shouldn’t be punishing you for my mistakes from three hundred years go.”

Sans looked up at her, still leaning against her arm. “This still about the friends rule thing? Or is this about your brother?”

Jewel sighed a little, squeezing his arm just a little bit more as her own supported him. “I just… I don’t know, maybe both,” she said softly. “It’s just… after coming back and seeing you guys so worried… I think it just finally… clicked, ya know? And I realized at that moment what a bad friend I was. That I was repeating a lot of mistakes because I fell into that same trap of trying to protect everyone but instead I was only making things worse.”

“Error helped with that a little,” he reminded her. “If he hadn’t taken you before you woke up, we might have had more time to talk before this next disappearance.”

“Heh, if Error didn’t take me, I probably wouldn’t have been with Blueberry and this whole thing would be a different kind of talk.”

Sans paled a little. Right, Nightmare was after Blueberry and she just happened to be there…

“Besides, Error wasn’t being selfish or anything by doing it,” she defended him. “He was doing it for me. I was not okay after waking up,” she said softly.

“Then he shouldn’t have taken you,” Sans argued. “Dream could have healed you more if you stayed.”

“Dream wouldn’t have been able to help,” she explained softly. “I was out of magic, you know how that is. Sleep is the only thing that would really help. Other than food, but that was the last thing on my mind. And in the anti-void, the need to eat is negated, so...”

Sans sighed a little. “Fine, I suppose that’s a valid point,” he relented.

“I didn’t mean to be gone so long. I hadn’t realized I had been awake for a week until Blueberry told me. Hard to tell time in nothingness, ya know?”

“Not really, but I get not being able to keep track of time. My time management is pretty horrible,” Sans chuckled lightly.

“I’d say you do pretty good for having, what, four jobs?”

“Heh,” he scratched the side of his cheek with a bony finger. “Caught that, did you?”

“Well, you have a station in every part of the Underground, plus you sell ‘dogs out of one, yes?”

He chuckled. “You do watch me, huh?”

“What can I say, your puns tickle my funny bone,” she teased him.

“Heh, don’t let Paps hear you say that. He doesn’t find them very _humerus_ ,” he grinned.

“Oh, pretty sure he’s just _ribbing_ you,” she grinned back at him. “He has some good wordplay of his own, right? He’s a little naïve, but like you, he’s smart. Probably just finds yours lazy.”

“Heh, probably right,” he smiled warmly. “You really should meet him.”

“Another reason why I’m here, I—”

Both blinked as her phone went off from her pocket, between them.

“Sorry,” she said as she leaned over, Sans scooting away from her so she could dig into her pocket and pull out her phone. She saw who it was and let out a small smile, answering it on speaker. “Hey Blue.”

“Jewel! Where are you?” he quickly asked, concern in his voice.

“Yo, Blue,” Sans grinned a little. “She’s with me.”

“Classic?” Blueberry realized before a sigh of relief escaped him. “You didn’t come and meet up after lunch, I got worried. You said you were going to check out my new puzzle!”

“Sorry, Blue, I lost track of time,” Jewel sweated a little.

“I know the anti-void doesn’t have time flow, but really, you have a phone! You’re as bad as my brother!”

Sans and Jewel both couldn’t help but chuckle. “Yeah, I think he’s rubbing off on me. Been feeling pretty lazy,” she drawled.

“Ugh, I told him it was contagious!” Sans had to muffle a snicker. “But, since you’re there, does that mean…?” Blueberry started to question.

“Well, yeah,” Jewel chuckled. “I was just about to talk to Classic about it.”

“Mwehehhehehehheh!” Blueberry laughed. “So, what’s the answer??” he asked excitedly.

Sans rose a brow, confused.

“I haven’t even told him anything yet, Blue,” Jewel chuckled. “You kind of called when I was about to.”

“Oh, sorry! The MAGNIFICENT SANS didn’t mean to interrupt!”

Jewel chuckled a little, shaking her head in amusement before looking back at Sans. “I’ve been teaching Blue some human recipes, and there’s this one dish I told him I’d show him, but only with Papyrus. So, basically, this is an invite for dinner in UnderSwap.”

“So, you’re offering to teach Paps how to cook?” Sans rose a brow, a little bemused.

“The human way, yeah,” she answered a little coyly, hiding the true intent from Blueberry, but Sans caught on, grinning a little.

“Well, depends on what happens in the next hour,” Sans said softly as he glanced back down the road.

“I gotta find Classic Papyrus yet, Blue, but Sans is for it. I’ll let you know, it might not be today.”

“Okay!” Blueberry beamed. “Call me as soon as you know! And remember to be back by four-thirty so we can start on whatever! Need to have dinner ready by six, I have to keep Papy on a schedule otherwise he’ll just go right back to Muffet’s!”

Jewel chuckled as Sans looked a little confused. “Your brother and his sweet tooth,” Jewel teased. “But all right, Blue, I’ll let you know. Talk to you soon.”

“Bye Classic me! Bye Jewel!”

“Later Blue,” Sans called out.

“Buh bye~” Jewel chirped before hanging up.

“Muffet’s?” Sans rose a brow.

“Oh, right. Uh, she and Grillby switched spots, so instead of a bar, there’s a tea house in Snowdin. Stretch still eats there about as regularly as you do at Grillby’s though.”

“So I take it Blueberry’s cooking is on par with Paps’, huh?” Sans chuckled.

“Apparently,” Jewel chuckled. “I haven’t had the pleasure of trying his tacos on his own.”

“Tacos?” Sans rose a brow.

“Yeah, Swap is weird,” she chuckled. “I mean, even Edgy makes lasagna. Most Papyrus’ make some form of pasta. But, Blue being a Sans instead, guess he had to break the mold even more,” she shrugged.

Sans chuckled a little. “Well, even if his cooking is bad, it’d at least be a break from pasta.”

“Eh, don’t hold your breath,” Jewel chuckled. “Because I mentioned to Blue I knew how to make Spaghetti Tacos, and he lost his little mind.”

Sans rose a brow. “Spaghetti… tacos…?” he questioned.

She chuckled. “You’ll be happy to know Stretch made the same face. I swear, it tastes better than it sounds. And there’s four basic ways to make it and I was gonna show them both how to do it.”

“Four? They’re gonna blow up the kitchen,” Sans sweated.

Jewel chuckled. “Well, it’s all depending on if you want it more spaghetti-like or more taco –like, and that can be done either in seasoning or prep, so…”

“Oh, I get it. Still…”

Jewel chuckled. “I suppose that’s a fair statement. Either way, gonna be a lot of noodles and tortillas. Oh boy, and this isn’t even getting into the soft taco territory,” she chuckled.

“You’re gonna kill me, Jewel,” Sans sweated.

Jewel chuckled softly. “Don’t worry, I’ll show Papyrus how to make something my grandma taught me that I know you’ll love.”

“Heh, I don’t know about that,” Sans chuckled. “If that’s the case why not just show them both how to make it?”

“Because Blue’s fighting the ketchup habit.”

Sans blinked a little. “Wait, really? I thought he and his Papyrus…” he looked a bit confused.

“I know, not everything is a complete swap. I mean, Blue still has the 1-stat thing, Stretch started off the same as Papyrus, and only increased really. He’s got more oomph than you do. But he’s also got worse habits. I think he’s even lazier than you, plus he drinks and smokes heavily. But he does drink honey like you drink ketchup so…” Jewel shrugged. “I also think Stretch still has an affinity for puzzles, even though Blue’s really into them. He’s got a little bit more mechanical engineer to his background versus you’re quantum physics shtick.”

“Easier to talk shop with him?” Sans rose a brow.

“Eh,” Jewel shrugged. “I’m not much of a scientist in any form. I suppose I’m more philosophical than anything. I mean, don’t get me wrong, being stuck with nothing to do got me into the computer code of the whole world, learning all that garbage that I probably still suck at compared to you two. Plus, I love a good Schrodinger's Cat scenario. That damn cat has been my whole life, damn it,” she chuckled.

“Oh really?” Sans held a lazy smirk. “Do you even really know what Schrodinger’s Cat is, or are you just pulling it out of thin air?”

“It’s the state where something is two things at once. In the case of the cat, there’s a fifty percent chance of it being either alive or dead at the same time and until you open the box to see the result, the cat is both. It’s this logic as to why we even have most of our modern electronics.”

“Impressive,” Sans chuckled a little. “And as much as I love the fact you know that, how does that apply to your life?”

“Oh, that’s complicated as hell,” Jewel chuckled. “Just like the field, I suppose.”

Sans couldn’t hide his mirth. “You understand more about science than you give yourself credit for if you can understand that.”

“I mean, if you break it down for me, I can get most anything. I just can’t, ya know, do it all. I have a very mathematical mind, I suppose, despite the art stuff. You know, humans aren’t supposed to be able to do both,” she mused. “You’re supposed to be right or left-brained. Dominance over one side. Left-brained people are more mathematical, scientific, logical, while right-brained people are more emotional, creative, intuitive.”

Sans chuckled. “And you’re both. I suppose I see the comparison to a certain cat,” he smirked.

Jewel chuckled. “It’s more than just that. A lot more. But that can be something for another day. I’m taking up too much of your time.”

“Hardly, I welcome the distraction,” he smirked.

“No, I mean,” Jewel got serious as she turned, her windows deactivating. “The doors are going to open.”

Sans blinked, being brought back to reality. “Fuck my life,” he muttered.

“C’mon, I’ll drive this time,” she said as she took his hand, teleporting them between the trees near the ruins.

“I really hate this,” he muttered.

“I know. I’ll go scope out the ruins once they’re out, can’t argue it if they’re not there,” Jewel smirked.

“Wait!” Sans tried to turn around, but she was gone. Damn it, why did she have to do that! She was just like him, damn it! He growled a little and turned as the doors opened.

Sans watched as Frisk came out of the ruins. He didn’t see any dust on their hands, but that didn’t mean much… He shook a little, starting to follow. When the kid stepped over the stick, he purposely stepped on it, making it echo loudly before teleporting away before the kid noticed. Seeing the kid jump was always a good sign. They were dreading a fight... if they were expecting one they would have been prepared for it…

The scenario played out as it always did. The kid waited to be told to turn around before doing so, laughed when the whoopee cushion trick went off. It was… strange. If they were doing another pacifist run, why did they reset? As the kid walked off to go do Papyrus’ puzzles, he felt this unease in his soul. What was going on?

As his mind pondered all the possibilities they could think of, catching something out of the corner of his eye made him jump. He took a breath when he realized it was just Jewel. “Stars, do you have to keep doing that?”

“Don’t you do it to Papyrus?”

“Yeah, but he’s my brother!”

“And you’re mine.”

Sans blinked a little before laughing. “Okay, touché.” But he quickly sobered up, glancing down the road. “So… what did you find?”

“Nothing,” Jewel shrugged. “No dust, no real fighting. Toriel’s alive, so…”

“So another pacifist run? Then… why did they reset?” Sans questioned.

“Well, two prevalent theories.”

“You gonna share? I’m at a loss here.”

Jewel shrugged a little. “One is that they reset because something didn’t turn out the way they hoped. Like, they were trying to befriend a monster, and it didn’t quite work. Or they missed something they shouldn’t have and time travel is the only way to fix the mistake, but they saved after they had done it and have no choice but to start over.”

Sans listened, contemplating. “And the other?”

“That they didn’t save at all as a challenge and they died, taking them back to the start.”

Sans blinked rapidly. “Wait… what??”

“Well, have you had any minor resets? Like a few hours or anything?”

Sans blinked as he tried to think. He could have been sleeping through those, he had done it before… but generally he got nightmares when it happened… He wracked his brain, trying to come up with anything. “…no…”

“Sounds like the kid’s trying to make this one as close to real-life as possible. Kind of give ‘em props, but the truth is they’ll just go right back to that point. Real-life isn’t that easy,” Jewel sighed.

Sans let out a sigh. “Well, guess this means we’re good for dinner. But maybe not today, Paps is gonna be focusing on the human a bit too much.”

“It’s cool, I’ll let Blue know.” But an unpleasant thought came through her head. “Sans… I know I hadn’t.. talked to Papyrus, but, he saw me before, right? When I was here recovering?”

“Hm? Yeah.”

“And the world reset…”

Sans then paled a little as he realized what she was doing. “Well… it’s a good thing you didn’t say anything to him yet, I guess. You’ll be truly meeting him for the first time.”

“He’ll buy that you’re friends with a human and didn’t tell him?”

“I’ll tell him the truth, that you’re not around much for me to introduce him to you. He’d believe you come from somewhere else, won’t question it.”

“And if there’s another reset?”

Sans turned to her. That was right, attachments were hard for her… to have Papyrus forget her after she got close… “I…”

“Oh god, what about Blue?” she started to shake a little.

“Hey, Blueberry won’t forget you,” Sans tried to reassure.

“Yeah, he will, Sans. Stretch is the one who remembers, not Blue. If his world goes through a reset…”

“But… doesn’t he remember Ink?” Or had his world not been affected by a reset since then? There was no way… right?

“I… I don’t…” she shook a little.

“Hey,” Sans put a hand on her arm, trying to make her look at him. “It’s okay.” He grabbed both of her arms gently as he looked up at her. “It’ll be okay. We’ll figure it out.”


	35. Hearts and Stars

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys, sorry about the late post. I’ve officially gone back to work, yay! But that also means less time to do all my projects. I’m still writing, and I’m trying to keep going!
> 
> Also, here are two more asks! Not really spectacular, but for those who like them, here ya go!
> 
> https://www.deviantart.com/guardianoftheflame/art/Encoded-Asks-10-Cuties-847803184
> 
> https://www.deviantart.com/guardianoftheflame/art/Encoded-Asks-11-Asriel-847803488

# Chapter 35 – Hearts and Stars

Jewel laid on her back on the grass inside the Doodlesphere, waiting for a certain skeleton to return. So much for checking in periodically to see if she would show up… there had to be a better way to get ahold of these AU jumpers.

“Damn it, Red, I’m going to have to buy them all cell phones,” she muttered into her own as she rubbed the bridge of her nose, going so far as to rub her eyes afterward.

“Heh, and they call me lazy,” Red chuckled into the phone. He was at his station, doing his job, as per usual. Though he was in Waterfall this time around, kid was progressing. Undyne would have his head if he was caught, but he really didn’t care. He wasn’t sleeping, she couldn’t argue. No rule against being on the phone at work.

“It’s not lazy, just hard to reach. In fact, the fact he’s not in base shows he’s out doing something.”

“Make ‘scuses all you want, sweetheart. Why ya waitin’ on him anyway?”

“Just… wanna do some art stuff,” Jewel shrugged a little. “I’ve been using scrap paper at Blueberry’s and it’s not the same, I’m not… focused on the things on loose paper. I want another sketchbook, I want to rebuild my supplies.”

“Heh, nice to hear ya so motivated,” Red smiled a little into the phone. “Ya need the painter for all dat?”

“Well, I mean, yeah, Ink could make it for me but… eh… what I really miss is going to an actual art store. Just all the different things there. I could go on my own, but, there’s something… special about going with a friend who gets it.”

“I’d ditch in a second to go wit ya, but, I ain’t got a creative bone in my body.”

“Eh, I doubt that,” she chuckled a little. “You’re still into science, yeah? Ya need to be a little creative to be able to figure out new projects, do things that haven’t been done before.”

“I haven’t touched a lab in years, sweetheart,” Red said softly.

“I think it’s the same for most Sanses, honestly. I know Classic got a kick out of what little I do know about quantum mechanics, got spark back in him a little.”

“You know quantum mechanics?” Red rose a boned brow, disbelief in his voice.

“Couple theories,” Jewel chuckled. “I actually used to be a good science student back in school. Math and science were kind of my thing. It was weird, I wasn’t allowed to take any art classes, but I excelled at those, little bit in history too.”

“You’re so weird, that doesn’t sound like you at all,” Red chuckled.

“I know, right?” she chuckled. “I get theories, but I don’t have the whole mechanical mind behind it. I don’t think I’d be able to do all the complex math it takes. I mean, algebra I get, I enjoy it weirdly enough, but doing all that stuff? Eh… I can’t even stand looking at the computer code I live in.”

“Well, that’s computer science, it’s a different animal, sweetheart. Heh, maybe we should get together sometime, see what ya got wracking around yer skull. Might kick start whatever I got left in these old bones.”

“You’re not that old, Red,” Jewel laughed a little.

“Feel old,” he laughed back.

“You just need a break.” She doubted Blueberry would mind… “You wanna come do this meet up thing?” she then asked.

“What meet up thing?” Red rose a brow.

“I’m teaching Blue and Classic’s Papyrus how to cook. We’re already gonna have the five of us, couple more won’t hurt.”

“Wait… you’re inviting da Boss?”

“Well, if he wants,” she said with a gentle smile into the phone, something he could easily hear in her voice. “He’d get to hang out with other Papyrus’, try something different. I’m teaching them how to make spaghetti tacos, so not quite what he’d consider normal,” he chuckled.

“Ya do make some good pasta, sweetheart,” Red grinned a little. “But mixin’ it with tacos? Really?”

“Yeah, Stretch and Classic had the same reaction. Actually, I think you’re taking it better,” she chuckled.

“Heh, I don’t know how those two cook or whatever, but ya can’t compare nuthin’ until you’ve had to scrape charcoal out of a lasagna pan and pretend it’s good.”

“Oh boy. Well… maybe I can sneak Edgy in for the lesson too, show him how humans do things so he can try and “better us” at our own dishes.”

“Oh, you’re devious,” he held a malicious grin. “You’re doin’ it to the others too, ain’tcha? Not tellin’ ‘em how much they suck.”

Jewel chuckled a little. “I don’t know what you mean, I’m just showing them how I cook,” she said with an innocent inflection.

Red couldn’t help his laughter. “Okay, sign us up. I’ll convince da boss to come somehow.”

Jewel grinned. “This is gonna be fun! Oh god, there’s gonna be so much food,” she chuckled. “Classic’s already worried about the kitchen being burned down.”

“Gonna need a firm hand on da reigns, dollface. Boss thinks he’s monster’s gift to culinary, he ain’t gonna listen well.”

“Eh, firm hand in teaching him then. Gonna have to keep a spoon in the back pocket, channel my Babci,” she smirked.

“That ornery old hag? What’d she do?”

“Smack your brother upside the head and hand with said spoon,” she grinned.

Red laughed at the image. “Oh fuck me! Please, do it! I want a picture!”

“Sure!” Jewel grinned. “Soon as he tries to do something he shouldn’t. Blue and Classic Paps ain’t gonna escape it either. It’s how I learned,” she laughed.

“So when is this goin’ down?” Red asked with an excited grin.

“Kinda depends on Classic right now,” she said softly. “He just had a reset and while it’s looking like another pacifist, ya know…”

“Heh, I get that. Most of our resets are from the kid dying durin’ a pacifist. I guess I’m lucky, boss does more killin’ that the kid. Still sucks ass when I gotta… ya know…”

“Yeah, I know,” Jewel sighed a little, knowing far too well. “Ya doin’ all right? Really?” she then asked. “You were a bit… off, last time we were up and even now you feel a little…”

“Eh…” Red sighed a little. “This is great and all, I haven’t smiled like this in a while,” he said honestly. “But before ya called, yeah it was… a little rough. Boss dun hit me as much since ya showed up, but he’s still harsh as fuck. Gonna take him a while to realize all that, I guess.”

“You’re not cutting, are ya Red?”

He grew silent on the other end of the line.

“Red?” Jewel asked, firmer, sitting up.

“Not in a while,” he said softly, slowly. “I can’t say I… haven’t…” She’d catch him, he knew it. He knew when she was lying, they were practically the same in this regard.

“Why didn’t you call me?”

“It was… when you were gone,” he admitted. “After Error grabbed ya. Ink took me back home and I was just… then Papyrus… I dun think ya were awake, sweetheart…”

“Red…” she softly called out.

“I’m fine, really,” he said, trying to reassure, though himself or her he wasn’t sure.

“Ya wanna come with me and Ink?” she then offered. “I’ll deal with Edgy.”

“It’s an art store, sweetheart, I’m not gonna really have much to do,” he laughed a little.

“They have science kits and models. Granted, a lot of the science kits are for kids, but the models are pretty advanced stuff, some rockets and whatnot. You haven’t dealt with that stuff, right? Kind of hard to do in the Underground. We can get you a few, heck, I’m sure Stretch and Classic would love to try some of these with you. I’ll even take you guys to Overtale or Outertale, we can launch ‘em.”

Red could feel himself shaking a little. It was so strange to have someone worry about him like this. She wasn’t yelling at him for cutting, wasn’t calling him stupid or weak… instead she was just offering to spend time with him, trying to include him.

“Red?” she called into the line as he grew silent.

“Y-yeah,” he said, trying not to let the tears that were welling in his eyes come through his voice. “Sounds fun,” he said honestly, a fang-filled smile gracing his features.

“You want me to come steal you now? We can take a nap while we wait for Ink.”

“I can just hear da Boss and Undyne,” he said softly, “but yes. Please, that sounds amazing.”

He said please. Damn it, he was doing pretty bad, wasn’t he? In a second, she was there, grabbing him, before popping right back. He blinked as he was suddenly on grass once again, his phone not even hung up.

“There,” Jewel said as she hung up the phone and laid back on the grass. “I’m going to have to take you to Overtale one of these days. There’s no sun here, and there’s nothing like taking a nap in the sun.”

Red blinked, putting his phone away as he saw her lay down.

“Sweetheart?” he asked softly. He noticed how tired she looked. “Are _you_ doing okay?”

“Eh,” she shrugged a little. “Haven’t been sleeping too well. Nightmares, ya know how it goes.”

He knew it too well. He sighed and sat down beside her. He didn’t feel quite able to just… relax, as much as he wanted to.

Jewel glanced over through a half-lidded gaze. She reached over and rubbed his back, feeling him jump a little at the attention. “Okay, Red, let me see it.”

Red hesitated little. He knew why she wanted to, but it still felt so… he couldn’t even find the words to describe it to himself.

“C’mon,” she gently encouraged. When he still didn’t move, she slowly stat up, moving right beside him. She put a hand on his shoulder and he looked toward her, a bit of fear in his eyes. “Red, I’m not going to berate you for it. C’mon, you know I know how it is. That’s how we met, remember?”

“Yeah, I know,” he sighed, leaning in a little, as if he could hide more if she couldn’t see his face. “It’s just… it always makes it feel so…”

“I know,” she rubbed his back a little. “It’s like you can ignore it if no one else sees it. But once the evidence is out there…”

“Yeah… just becomes… real…”

“It’s always real, Red. Just because you don’t have to face it right away doesn’t make it any less true. And I’m not going to make you talk about it if you’re not ready. I’m always here when you are. Though, I’d prefer you’d talk to me before acting out on it.”

A few tears lined his eyes as he tried to hide it. He felt her arms wrap around him and he just leaned into her hold. It was so strange to him, to have her like this. He cared about her, she was nice and all… but damn it, he wasn’t used to feeling like someone cared about him. He was always the one who gave a damn and tried to hide it.

“It’s okay,” she whispered softly to him. “You’re not alone, Red.”

“You’re too damn nice to me, sweetheart,” he said softly, but as she held him, he shrugged off his jacket off his shoulders, letting it fall a bit. He felt her move with him, even help him pull it down a little. He wiped his eyes and pulled back and slowly pulled up his sweater sleeves, wincing a little as some of the fresher wounds still pulled. He might have been left handed, but he still cut on both arms. Scars laced the bones all the way toward his elbows.

“Oh, Red…”

“Please don’t…” he started. Instead, he felt that familiar warmth from her hand as she activated her healing magic. He leaned into her a little as she healed the cuts on his arms.

“You’re loved, Sans,” she told him softly, hugging him with one arm as she healed his injuries. “You have friends who care about you and I know Papyrus does too.”

“He sure has a funny way of showin’ it,” Red muttered softly as he leaned into her. “But he’s right, ya know?”

“No, he’s not. And you know I’ll fight him on this, I’ve done it before,” she reminded him. “You’re not worthless. You’re my friend and I love you. You always have somewhere to go, Sans. All you have to do is call me, I’ll come running, okay?”

“D-damn it… can you just… stop…” he managed to growl out, his eyes clenched shut as he tried not to cry at her words. She was even using his real name…

“Okay,” she told him as she rubbed his back. His arms were healed, but she knew, mentally, he wasn’t ready for most of this.

Jewel pulled him back with her as she laid on the grass. Red almost instantly stopped crying, feeling a bit of a blush come across his face. “W-what are you doing?”

“We’re going to nap, right?” she said as if it was the most logical thing. “You don’t have to read into it. We’re friends, platonic cuddles are a thing. Besides, you could really use some.”

Red didn’t know what to feel with this. On one hand, he still felt like he needed to cry. This was enough of a jarring scenario that he stopped, but… “Damn it,” he muttered before he leaned in, his head on his shoulder and his arm across her stomach, holding her tightly.

“There we go,” she said, her arm around his back and resting on his ribs, her other arm behind her head as a pillow. “It’s okay, Sans, you’re not alone.”

Red continued to hold her, fighting the tears as they welled up. “Just… just shut up,” he muttered a little, before feeling her hand move from his back to his skull, gently petting him. It was a strange sensation… and he found himself liking it. It calmed him down slowly and he felt his eye sockets grow heavy. His eyes closed and he very softly started to purr.

It was such a strange sound. Was this a quirk of Red’s, or did all the skeletons do this, she wondered. However, it wasn’t unwelcome. Jewel had cats in her life and she quite liked the sound of the purr. It lulled her into slumber with him.

There was no telling how long Jewel and Red slept. Ink, however, was surprised to see them there, that was for sure. He tilted his head to the side as he stared down at them. He felt… weird, seeing it. Not just that it was strange. Jewel didn’t really come visit him as much as he wanted, and now she was here with Red? And they were sleeping?

“Ya know,” Jewel spoke, making Ink jump, “It’s rude to stare.”

“Damn it, how’d you..?” he questioned. “I was quiet!”

“Empath, remember? I feel when people are looking at me.”

“Weirdo,” he teased, sticking out a rainbow tongue. But he couldn’t help the mischievous grin. “But you’re lucky Error didn’t see you, he’d get so jealous~,” he teased more.

Jewel opened up one eye, giving him a half-lidded lazy gaze. “Error, or you?”

Ink blinked rapidly at the insinuation, his cheeks flushing before the rest of him caught up. “W-wha?”

“C’mon, Ink, I just said it. Empath.”

Ink’s face flushed more, before he plopped down, folding his legs under him as he sat near her head. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

Jewel chuckled a little. “I suppose not, I doubt being jealous is something you’re used to.”

“And you do? Doesn’t seem like you’d have a lot to be jealous about. Everyone’s all over you.”

Jewel pulled her arm out from under her head and held her hand out in front of Ink, who hesitantly took it. “Ink, think about how I grew up. There was a lot I was jealous of. But not everything I could so easily steal, ya know?”

“Like what?” Ink blinked, looking down at her.

“Like a good family for starters. I loved my little brother, but my parents… eh… but even that I suppose didn’t matter for long. Guess I wasn’t that jealous of things as I thought I was back then.”

Ink tilted his head a little. “Anything else? I mean… seems like you were pretty lonely. You said your friend Cat eventually left you for a guy, right? Were you jealous then?”

That was oddly specific… “I mean… it hurt a little,” Jewel admitted. “She spent more time with him than me. But I had also been trying to push her away. I mean, I was getting into more serious crime at that point. I liked the dude, he was good for her. He helped her in ways I never could. And I think I used him.”

“Used him?” Ink parroted, confused.

“To get Cat away from me. I started getting worse when I realized he was there to stay. I purposely started acting more brash around him, not hiding as much of my criminal nature. Cat of course wanted everything to do with my plans. She was a wild card, she was acting out from pain too. He pulled her back down to earth. He made her happy. I was only going to get her killed. I mean… I can keep a small group alive, even against all kinds of odds, I did it with my group when we robbed banks. It didn’t take much for us to case them. Nothing could really stand up to what I could do. I…” Jewel started to falter. “Damn, I really was like Nightmare…”

“How much did Dream tell you?” Ink asked. “I mean, he did compare you a bit, but that…”

“Eh… I fought the dude twice now remember? I can get a good read on people in short amounts of time. I was wondering why I hesitated the first time…”

“Wait, you hesitated?”

“Yeah, I mean…” She sighed a little. “It’s nothing really, Ink. You probably felt something similar the first time you met Error. Kinda like… looking in a mirror.”

“You’re not like Nightmare,” Ink said firmly.

“Eh, dunno about that. You say I’m like Dream, but my magic reflects them both.”

“But you act more like Dream. You help people.”

“Not really, Ink. I help my friends. I’m pretty selfish when you think about it. Definitely more like Error.”

“Okay, that I buy,” Ink sighed a bit. “But you’re not like Nightmare, Jewel. You don’t go around spreading misery just to power yourself up. Because you feel like you had it bad, that everyone else has to too.”

“I was though, Ink,” she reminded. “I showed you that, remember? The whole reason I got into fights was to take my anger out on people. I had it bad, so I wanted to hurt someone else. I learned to take people’s anger and use it, much like Nightmare does, I could even make people feel angry or hurt and use it. “

“But you don’t do that anymore,” Ink said firmly. “Why is this on your mind to begin with? I thought you were doing better.”

Jewel sighed a little, glancing back down at the sleeping skeleton against her. “Been doing a little soul searching lately. Trying to figure some stuff out.”

Ink paled a little, quite a feat for someone so white already. “You’re not going to leave us again are you?”

“No,” Jewel chuckled softly. “Though… I’ll admit, the thought crossed my mind. I mean, I could just reset everything and none of you would know I exist—”

“No!!” Ink instantly grabbed her arm, a hand going over her mouth to stop her from even considering that! He didn’t know what was pouring through him at that point, but fear was definitely one of them. He didn’t want to lose her! “You’re not allowed to think like that!!” he yelled at her. “Promise me you’ll never do it!!”

“Ink,” she tried, muffled by his hand.

“No! You’re not allowed to say anything else until you promise me!!” Tears were starting to line his eyes. He felt himself shaking.

Jewel was about to sigh, but she felt another arm squeeze her around her middle, a skeletal arm worming its way under her and squeezing her tight.

“Promise us,” she heard from Red. She could feel him tremble.

What a thing to wake up to, she thought. She sighed. She broke promises though, she lied… It was why she didn’t make them. God, she was a Sans, wasn’t she?

The longer she took to respond, the more frightened the two skeletons became. Was it really something so serious that she thought of it that hard? Red sat up a little, letting her go just to look into her eyes. He had to know.

“S-sweetheart… you’re not… serious about that, are ya?” he started to plead. “You’re the best thing that’s happened in my whole damn life, ya got Papyrus to actually think about what he does! He’s gotten better at cookin’ cuz he wants ta beat ya at sumthin’! You’re there when I need help! Ya can’t jes disappear!” Tears were starting to form in his eyes, fear running through him. “I deal wit enough resets that I can remember! Don’t make me forget you, please!!”

Jewel sighed a little. Still, Ink held his hand firmly against her mouth. An evil thought came to her though. She could always lick his hand… nah, she didn’t know where he put those. Instead, she tapped his knuckles, sending the message well enough. When his hand pulled back, she slowly sat up, turning to look at both of them.

“I didn’t mean to freak you out,” she started first. “Force loading timelines, especially in multiple AUs is not something I’ve done and I rather not do it. Resetting a single world after something catastrophic is one thing but to erase a minor mistake? Nah. Besides, I’d still remember it and you guys would drag it out of me,” she smiled softly at them. “I mean… realistically, I can go into the code, you guys can’t, if I really wanted to disappear I just have to stay there. I’d outlive most of you…”

“Jewel, you’re not helping!” Ink shouted at her. But he felt her hands on his arms. He felt her pull, and he didn’t stop her. He fell into her lap and the tears just started flowing. The panic, the fear, it was too much. What was this?

Jewel held the small skeleton against her, wrapping her arms around him. “I’m not going to disappear,” she then said, gently wiping his tears before going to Red, a hand caressing his cheek and gently wiping his eye as well. “I promise, I’m not going anywhere. I just… get depressed too and wonder sometimes if you guys would have been better off if I never showed up.”

“Then Underswap would be broken!” Ink shouted at her, tears falling as he looked up at her. “It would have fallen apart!”

“I could have easily have waited for you guys to finish your fight, done it afterward. I guess… I was more in tune with what was going on than I thought…”

“What are you going on about, sweetheart?” Red asked, seeing the pain in her eyes.

“Nothing, I…” she sighed a little. “I guess talking about what happened to me was harder than I thought it would be. Error made it a lot easier but seeing it from a third person perspective… I don’t know if it was better or worse than reliving it, ya know? He warned me about it, but I didn’t…” She sighed. Everything kept going back to him too… “But that’s why I’m trying to be around all of you right now, ya know? I’ve been staying with Blueberry the last few days, I went and made up with Classic. It’s been… I’ve been happy, ya know? And I don’t think I know how to handle it,” she laughed a little, a few tears in her eyes.

Red blinked, but he then laughed a little with her. “Yeah, I get that. Feels so weird and you wonder what’s going wrong.”

“Exactly, and it’s just like… you know that’s why you’re happy but it just feels like you’re messing up somehow because you’re not supposed to be.”

Ink looked between the two of them. So that’s why she was with Red. He understood that… Ink was still clueless with emotions. He knew basic things, but emotionally he was kind of on par with a child. Still a lot he didn’t understand. Hell, he was overwhelmed just because of this… being near her like this… but that fear… he knew that was his.

“Jewel?” Ink spoke up, making her look at him. “You’re supposed to be happy,” he said firmly. “You have us now. We’re all your family. You have a good family now. This is how it’s supposed to be from now on.”

Jewel stared at Ink for a while, the statement from earlier coming back at her. Ink was hard to read but right now he was clear as a bell. She leaned in and pressed her forehead against the painter’s. “I know. I’m sorry if I forget that sometimes. I’m just going to need you to remind me.”

Ink couldn’t help how he leaned into her touch. Every time he was close to her, he felt more than normal, and it generally meant he felt the need to be affectionate, to touch her somehow. He figured it had to be her desire, she did admit craving contact after all. He had to get this under control… maybe now that she was spending time with all of them, they could work on this?

“Heh,” Ink chuckled, his thoughts having gone through his head and out in a second. “Maybe we should get you a scarf to write stuff down on too,” he joked.

Jewel laughed a little at the idea. “Heh, that’d work if I could handle having things against my neck like that. How about we just set reminders on my phone, yeah?”

“I’ll get you into a scarf one of these days,” Ink grinned at her.

“You can try, ya little squirt,” Jewel teased, tickling him a little, which surprised him as he quickly snorted out a laugh.

Red chuckled a little with them. “Hey, weren’t ya gonna go to an art store or sumthin’?”

“Oh, right! We should do that before they close.”

Ink rose a brow. “Art store? I can just make you whatever you want.”

“I know. But I just miss it,” she smiled. “Besides, this way you can see what I like, I’m kinda picky,” she grinned a little. “It’s just fun to go.”

Ink then tilted his head. “The Underground doesn’t have anything like that. So we’d be going to… what, Overtale?”

“Dat the one with the humans?” Red asked.

“Yeah, but don’t worry about it. I’ve been there with Blue in public, and even Error, despite being stared at, was left alone. Let’s just go have some fun, eh?”

“Dun really like bein’ stared at, sweetheart,” Red admitted.

“I’ll be the filter, don’t worry,” Jewel smiled. “Besides, aren’t you looking forward to the models and stuff?”

Ink blinked and turned to Red, who simply chuckled a little. “Yeah, guess ya got me there.”

Well, this was weird. But who was Ink to argue? He got to spend more time with Jewel, and with art stuff! He definitely wasn’t going to complain about that!

“So, what are we waiting for?” Ink grinned.

It was little effort to actually get there. Teleporting wasn’t new to the Sanses, though even Red had to admit, teleporting through dimensions was a little bit more nauseating than most. Good thing they didn’t have stomachs, though that never stopped Ink. Not that it seemed to affect him as they appeared in an alley near the store. Red had put his hood up, a hint of a blush as he was already catching people glancing his way, but as Jewel put her arm around his shoulders he eased a little. She said she’d take care of it and he trusted her, as weird as it felt to do so.

Inside, it was… well, different. The store was mostly empty and those who were there were more focused on their own shopping than in staring at others. Ink’s eyes lit up, despite being able to create all of this at will, there truly was something special about seeing it all on display. Neither Jewel or Red could stop him from running through, his attention pulled every which way as he saw the different things on display, the different amounts of projects listed for people of all ages to try.

“Ya think he’d be less impressed by all this stuff, given what he can do,” Red chuckled.

“You never forget your first time in an art store as an artist,” Jewel chuckled. “It’s why I like to go though. You come in for a single thing and you wind up spending hours just looking at all the different things you could do.”

She then took Red’s hand and led him down a different aisle, Ink already having gone off into the back of the store in his excitement. Red was confused, raising a brow before he noticed all the different cooking utensils in the store. “Wait, I thought this was an art store?” Red questioned.

“Cooking is a type of art,” Jewel smiled. “There’s a lot more for dessert decorating, but they have all kinds of stuff.” She turned to Red. “You said Edgy wanted to beat me, right? Think he might like a cookbook? He can learn human secrets,” she winked.

Red blinked, but he laughed a little, a small red dusting appearing on his cheeks as he felt embarrassment growing. “You’re buying, right? Cuz I didn’t really bring anything.”

Jewel laughed a little. “Not that they accept gold here. Human currency is weird,” she grinned a little at him.

Red didn’t argue it. He just accepted the fact things were different. He didn’t really care. It wasn’t coming out of his pocket. Though, he wasn’t about to take Jewel for a ride either. “Well, if you’re sure,” he said softly, glancing through the cookbooks. Getting Edgy something was not on his mind, but… well… he couldn’t pass it up. If nothing else, he could hold off on giving it to him until his birthday or Gyftmas… or use it to guilt him a little if he was being particularly mean.

As Red examined the books, he noticed Jewel looking through the different cake and candy molds. He remembered the frosting fight suddenly and he couldn’t help but smile. It was the first time he really saw her happy. First time he met Classic and Ink.

“Ya know, if you wanna make another cake, I’m sure da boss wouldn’t mind. He might make it a competition n’all, but…”

Jewel chuckled. “I’ll keep it in mind.” But her head turned a little. “Keep looking, I better go check on Ink.”

Red was a little uncertain, but he did continue to browse as Jewel went on to find Ink. She found him in the pens and markers, trying out the ones that were on display. At least he wasn’t tearing into packages like some crazed toddler. But he was everywhere, leaving the pens down on the ground when he was done trying them out. The test paper they left out was his canvas, tiny as it was. He ripped it out from the shelf and was holding onto it. It wasn’t as if she hadn’t seen it before, or didn’t know how to put it back. Still…

“Guess all the clutter at the Doodlesphere should have prepared me for this.”

Ink blinked, torn from his doodling by her voice. He glanced around at the mess around him, sweating a little. “Uh… they’re all so cool! I couldn’t help myself!”

Jewel chuckled a little. “I know, Ink, but these are simply for testing.”

“Is that why some are locked up?” he asked.

“They’re more expensive, and small pen kits are definitely easy to steal. Trust me, I know,” she chuckled a little. “I don’t mind that you want to try them, and neither does the store, but you shouldn’t leave the pens all over like this, it’s a hazard. Other people could come down this way.”

“But, there’s almost no one here.”

“Doesn’t really matter, anyone who draws will come down these aisles. C’mon,” she urged.

Ink sighed, begrudgingly getting up with some of the pens. He was gonna just shove them in but she stopped him, making him put them back exactly where he found them. He pouted at her, maybe hoping to channel a little of Blueberry’s puppy eyes, but it didn’t work. She helped him, however, so it wasn’t like he was cleaning up his mess alone.

“Come on,” she then said once he was done, gently leading him away from the pens.

“But…” Ink pouted.

Jewel grinned a little at him. “I wanna talk to you about a project.”

Instantly, his eyes lit up. “Project? What about?”

“I just… wanna paint with you,” she grinned. “Like, a collaboration.”

“Really? Oh this is gonna be fun! What did you wanna do??”

“I don’t really know yet. That’s why,” she said as they turned into the aisle with the paint and canvases, “We’re gonna start plotting.”

Big yellow stars filled Ink’s eyes as he stared down the aisles.

Oh, this was definitely going to be fun!


	36. Extended Family

“I’m so glad you were free, little light,” Reaper lazily grinned as he approached his front door.

“Pfft, not like I have a job,” Jewel laughed.

“Sure you do, it’s just not on a set schedule. I know the feeling,” he chuckled. Reaper stopped at the door before looking up. “So, ready for the surprise?”

“Can’t imagine what you have planned,” she teased. Really, who else would be at his house?

The mischievous skeleton held a knowing smile as he opened the door and led her inside. He stretched a little as she shut the door behind her. As if on cue…

“Brother, is that you?” they heard from the other room.

“Yeah, it’s me Paps,” he said, his smile only spread. “And a guest.”

The blacked-cloaked Papyrus came out from the kitchen, the natural hiding spot of all Papyruses, and he blinked as his eyes focused on the young woman.

“Brother, is this who I think it is?” he asked, his eyes starting to light up.

“Yup,” Reaper grinned, before side-stepping, just in time to have his brother run up and try to grab Jewel. Reflexively, she teleported just enough to get out of his grasp.

“Sorry!” she quickly apologized. “I’m not like you.”

Papyrus was confused, and Reaper laughed, a light tone he hadn’t had in years. “And Paps isn’t like me.”

“Oh! You mean the death aura,” Papyrus quickly realized. “Sans is right. Unlike this lazybones here, I’ve mastered restraint on my aura! No mortal being will be harmed from a simple touch unless I wish it! So long as I wear gloves,” he grinned, holding up his hands to reveal the black gloves hidden inside of his long sleeves.

Jewel blinked a little, confused, before turning to Reaper. “Why don’t you do that?”

Papyrus seemed to enjoy the flustered look that appeared on his elder brother’s face as he struggled to come up with an answer. His look was smug and he held his arms over his chest in triumph.

“To put it simply, my brother was too lazy to ever really learn.”

“When was I ever going to need restraint?” Reaper defended himself. “How long have we been around, Paps? All I had to do was keep my distance until I was needed, I never—!” he stopped before glancing back at the human in the room. He sighed a little, a sad, nostalgic smile on his face. “I never thought that I’d… get attached to anything mortal. Until you came around, I had no reason to even think to hold back. And even after I started keep an eye on you, I kept… lying to myself. That I wasn’t ever going to need to approach you. I thought I could just watch from a distance like I had before, just occasional glances at one another…” He laughed a little, thinking back. “You were such a weird kid!” he remembered with a grin, “What tiny human kid was never scared of the scary skeleton in black robes?”

Jewel chuckled a little, thinking back as well. “Well, let’s face it. I had a weird view of death from the get-go. I mean, it kinds of happens when you can see spirits.”

“So, that’s how you met?” Papyrus spoke up. “You never did tell me that, brother.”

“Then he’d have to admit he was letting a six-year-old do his job for him,” Jewel teased.

“Brother!”

Reaper and Jewel laughed. “He didn’t ask me to, it just sorta… happened. I mean, it was in a schoolyard. Death hanging around a bunch of kids could be seen as weird.”

The two would begin to reminisce, telling the story to Papyrus as he intently listened, not that there was much to tell. Despite how young she was, Jewel was quite advanced. It came with being abused. Anything to take one’s mind off of it. She was also often told to read the dictionary for punishments by the teachers, mostly, for talking in class. To be fair, she was talking to the ghosts. That’s how she learned no one else could see them.

Reaper, from his perspective, didn’t even realize it until he happened to cross by on another job that spirits were lingering. He had been careful as he approached, avoiding the children, trying not to show a trail of death as he crossed the grass. The only restraint he had was not to let his aura seep out of his feet, a way to keep himself invisible. However, he soon realized even his magic wasn’t enough to keep him hidden from all view.

“That’s when I saw her the first time,” Reaper explained as he and Jewel both sat at the table, while his brother finished his prep for lunch. “She was sitting in the grass just talking with this wayward spirit.”

“So it wasn’t malicious, right?” Papyrus asked, concerned.

“Nah. She was a teenager I think?” Jewel thought back. “Had been killed way back before it was a school. Just never really… moved on. Too much sadness, I think? Hard to really remember all the details, my reading abilities weren’t as good then,” Jewel chuckled with a slight shrug. “Either way, I saw Reaper and well—”

“Wait, Reaper?” Papyrus blinked, looking back at him. “You’re where he got that name?”

“I swore I told you this, Paps,” Reaper chuckled. “She said her world had a name for guys like us.”

“Well, one of the many mythos for death,” Jewel laughed a little. “As a little kid, I mean, it was the easiest way to explain the concept of death. The “Grim Reaper” who would come and steal souls of the living.”

“That sounds… violent,” Papyrus disapproved.

“Well, no one really _likes_ to die, most just accept it,” Jewel shrugged. “I remember a few cartoons with depictions of the Grim Reaper.”

“Really? And my brother fit the personification you knew?”

“Nah,” Jewel chuckled. “Not by appearances anyway. You’re more like what humans would expect in the looks department, but you’re far too cheerful and upbeat. Pops is more like what they would expect, in all honesty, when he’s actually serious about his work. Neither of you would really be an ideal fit, Uncle Raps.”

“Wait, what?” Papyrus turned, looking at her with wide eyes. Reaper held a small smile, his head tilted slightly to the side feigning curiosity for Papyrus. He knew this bit already.

“What? Uncle Raps?” she blinked. She then couldn’t help the chuckle that escaped her. “Well, I mean, Grim really doesn’t suit you. Both of you reap souls, you’re both a “reaper” but you both can’t be named that, right? So, shorten Reaper Papyrus with dad’s nickname for you and you get Raps.”

The newly dubbed Raps’ eyes had tears well up in them before he rushed over and wrapped his arms tightly around the human. Jewel couldn’t help but hold her breath, waiting for the feeling to take her, fighting the urge to teleport, but much to her surprise, she really didn’t feel that death aura. It had been something she had introduced to by accident, getting too close to Reaper as a child. He really did repress it well. Enough to where she felt comfortable hugging him back.

He felt more tears as he felt her arms wrap around him in return. He was a being of death, almost no one let him hug them like this! This human really was something special! “So, you…” he glanced to his brother. “You really adopted a mortal child?”

Reaper had to shake off the pang of jealousy in him. It wasn’t as if he was ever jealous of his brother, in fact, he always thought the world of him. But that motion… he regretted not listening to his brother all those years ago. Learning that restraint would have meant he could hug his little light. But it was too late now…

“Heh, what can I say, bro? She really _wormed_ her way into these _old bones._ ”

“Nyeh! No!” Raps pulled back and glared harshly at his brother. “No, none of those!”

“Oh, come on, Uncle Raps,” Jewel grinned. “You don’t like _rib ticklers_?”

Raps blinked as Reaper put a hand over his mouth, hiding a snicker as his brother tried to process if that was innocent or intentional word play.

“Not when they’re lazy puns,” he decided to clarify. “It’s low-brow.”

“It shouldn’t matter what makes people laugh,” Jewel then said sagely. “You two know better than anyone that life isn’t as long as people make it out to be. And even immortals like you two, maybe especially you two, deal with more than what they should. A little levity shouldn’t be downplayed so long as the job gets done, right?”

Both immortals stared at her, Raps’ mouth slightly agape as he tried to figure out a response, opening and closing his jaw as words failed him. Reaper, for his part, just wanted to hug her. His hand shook under the table, needing to hide it from her the only thing that made his thoughts bearable.

“How old are you?” Raps then asked bluntly.

That shook Reaper from his thoughts for a moment. “It doesn’t matter, bro,” he said softly, a smile finding its way back to his face. “She’s always been wiser than her age would suggest. This is no exception.”

Raps seemed to accept that and went back to prepping up lunch. Reaper, however, got up.

“Dad, you okay?” she asked.

“Yeah,” he grinned lazily. “Just gotta check on something.”

“Need help?” she offered.

“Always,” he laughed. “But I got it this time. Relax, you’re our guest. It’s the first time you’ve been here. Eventually I hope it’ll be like you’re home, but for now, let us spoil you a little,” he winked at her.

“Yes, this is the first time I’ve gotten to meet my niece!” Raps loudly proclaimed from his spot at the counter. “You should take it easy as our guest! Besides, it’s rare my brother actually wants to _do_ any work, please don’t persuade him otherwise!”

Jewel couldn’t help but snicker as Reaper lightly shook his head with a bemused smile. “Just relax and spend some time with your uncle. I won’t be long,” he said as he went further back into the house.

She glanced down the hall, curious, but decided to let it go. Maybe it was a god thing, who knew? She stretched a little and looked across the table at her uncle. “So, whatcha making?”

“Spaghetti, of course!” he declared.

She really should have known better, but what else was there to talk about? Their job was pretty depressing. However… “Spaghetti sounds awesome,” she responded genuinely. “Did dad ever tell you that it’s my favorite?”

“Really? That’s amazing! But of course, any niece of mine would love it! Even if this will be your first time trying mine! It’s out of this world!”

“I don’t doubt it,” Jewel grinned, “You and dad are pretty _otherworldly._ ”

Raps groaned a little bit. “Please, he didn’t infect you young, did he?”

“Guilty as charged,” Jewel chuckled a little. “He always tried to cheer me up with a pun or ten when I was down.” She smiled fondly at the memories, before glancing back over at her uncle. “You think Pops could learn restraint on his aura?”

“I do believe so,” Raps declared genuinely. “It would be harder for him now than it would have years ago. His power has only increased, obviously. I wonder if he will ever truly give it a try.”

“Well, it’d be nice. I’d like to be able to hug my dad too.”

Raps’ smile fell a little as he turned back to his niece. “My dear… it would take him longer than your lifespan to learn, I’m afraid. It took me almost a hundred years to get mine under control, through trial and error. While I could guide him, it may not happen. If he began when he first met you, he would be able to hold you now, but…”

“Ah,” Jewel said with a sigh. “Guess I can’t keep holding off on my natural life span by hiding in a timeless void forever while he learns.”

“I’m sorry, my dear.”

“It’s okay,” Jewel sighed, but she held a gentle smile. “Not your fault. Least I can hug you, right?”

“Of course!” Raps grinned. “Any time you wish it! Just be mindful if I’m working, the gloves might be off.”

“In more ways than one, huh, unc?” she teased.

“What?”

She sniggered a little but easily waved it off. “I’m gonna look around a little, okay?”

“Well, lunch is almost done, I can give you a full tour once we finish,” Raps explained.

“I’ll stick to the front then,” she said as she headed back into the living area.

Unlike other Sans and Papyrus’ homes, theirs was built well before the main timeline. It had an older feel, almost like a cottage in an oasis. She had seen the lush green outside, probably a gift from Life. There was a distance around the house that was darker, obviously, more rock than green, but that made sense. Life did make it easier to grow plants in unnatural surroundings.

The entrance and living room were all one space. Books were lining the walls, just nonstop. She wondered how long it took her father and uncle to read all of these… and how many more must be in the private rooms? She stopped at a vase holding a glass flower on one of the bookshelves, her eyes examining it. It seemed an unnatural color, it wasn’t reflecting light normally.

“Dad still got a thing for flowers?” she called to her uncle, examining it closely, but she didn’t touch it.

“Oh, definitely!” Raps answered with mirth. “Did you see the one in the living room? That was a gift from Life! She made one that would never wilt just for him! It was so sweet!”

“It’s definitely beautiful,” Jewel agreed, though her eyes seemed to get a few shades darker.

**_“Bitch stole your idea!_ ”**

“We don’t know how long ago it was given to him,” Jewel thought, her eyes never leaving the flower. Despite her defense of Life, the tone of her thoughts betrayed her true emotion.

**_“Still a bitch. When does Life of all things get off on trying to create a glass version of a flower? Her magic can’t encompass glass work!”_ **

_“Please, quit yelling, we do not need ears to hear you and your voice is naturally loud as it is. Besides… it is hardly helping.”_

“Gods can create almost anything… glass is simply an element of the earth too, heated sand, which is ground up and refined rock… who’s to say she couldn’t create a plant-based one, or even rocks don’t fall at least partially under her banner? Some religions agree with that aspect, you should know,” she continued in her head. The last thing she wanted was her father or uncle hearing her. “Besides, I hardly own the idea… how long have humans done this kind of thing?”

**_“…still bullshit.”_ **

_“Agreed. But you can still do other things for him, Jewel. After all, he chose you to be in his life, none of the other gods can take that away from you.”_

**_“Or, ya know, fuck it and just do what you wanted to anyway. Just because she did it too doesn’t mean it’ll mean any less. Hell, you still love Angel even though you got me.”_ **

****

_“Cur.”_

“Just… just stop,” Jewel barely whispered, a tear falling from her eye. Silence finally overcame her senses and she started to space out, just staring at that flower.

“…ight…. Light?”

Jewel snapped her head up, blinking rapidly. She glanced over at Reaper standing beside her, a worried look etched into his bones.

“Light, are you okay?” he asked. “Paps said you were spacing out, you didn’t even react to him touching you.”

Not even physical contact? Damn, she was out of it… “Yeah,” she said softly. “Just got lost in thought…”

“Light…”

“Really, I’m fine,” she said giving him a smile. “I…” She took a breath, a hand over her chest. “Remember, my powers are different now? Well, I, uh…”

“Wait… Angel and Fenrir?” he asked, noticing her hand placement.

“Yeah, I can… talk to them at any time now, not just when I’m asleep. But sometimes I space out.”

“What’s so life-threatening they had to contact you here?” Worried was a weak description of his tone.

Jewel blinked, but she laughed a little. “Oh, oh no, dad. It’s not just a life or death situation anymore. They can talk to me about anything and everything. Just like we can. They’re fully sentient.”

Reaper still looked concerned, that news not quite the best to hear. “That’s… I guess a lot really has happened in the last three hundred years…” he said softly.

“I’ve grown up, at least I’ve liked to think so,” she said softly. “But, I’ll admit, I still have my childish moments, I mean,” she glanced back up to the glass gift. “Looks like someone beat me to your forever flower, huh?”

Was that was this was about? Reaper held a soft smile. “She didn’t beat you.”

“Please,” Jewel laughed lightly, “How old are you two? There’s no way she just figured this out in the last three hundred years.”

“It’s not a competition, Light. And you can’t have a garden with only one flower. You told me that, remember?”

Jewel blinked a little, turning to him. He smiled and motioned for her to follow him. She didn’t notice Raps wasn’t in the kitchen, nor did she notice the other doors he could possibly be in. She followed Reaper through the home to his room where he simply opened a door. Despite his occupation, he didn’t like just black. Lots of natural colors were in his room. Sure, he had black sheets and blankets, but his room was natural wooden colors, just like the rest of their home.

On the far wall, he opened up the closet door and pulled out a little lockbox. He set the box on his bed, motioning for her to sit on the other side. Once she sat herself down, he carefully unlocked it, an actual, physical key needed for it. Opening the lid, a wave on nostalgia hit them both like a truck, memories of her childhood flooding back.

Inside the lockbox was a cascade of various things she had made as a child. Drawings, string bracelets, and more importantly, some delicately held together origami flowers lying on top.

“Don’t you remember?” he asked with a smile. “I didn’t even adopt you at the time. You noticed me following you around more and had the guts to confront me about it.”

Jewel chuckled a little bit. “I remember being totally freaked out and yelling at you that I didn’t die, you didn’t have a right to follow me.”

“So you were scared of me, eh?” Reaper teased.

“I saw you all the time with that big scary scythe,” she defended her childhood self. “I wasn’t some wayward spirit, you were definitely fitting the definition of a reaper right then. I thought you were gonna steal my soul right out of me and I’d watch myself die again.”

“Yeah, the timing wasn’t great,” he admitted, rubbing the back of his head. “But you warmed up pretty quickly once I promised you that I wasn’t going to steal your soul. You were picking dandelions to give to your mom and you tried to give one to me…”

“I got you to take it,” Jewel chuckled, a little proud in her statement. “Probably better the dandelion taught me that lesson as early as it did.”

Reaper chuckled a little, his sockets going dark as he got lost in the memories, a wide smile etched on his face. “You came back and brought me a chocolate rosebud with foil around the chocolate and a fake stem and leaves. I didn’t even tell you I liked flowers!”

“You didn’t? I swore you did…” she tried to think back.

“No, not directly. It was always “you know how much I love flowers” or something like it afterward. You picked it up all on your own. Simply by how I watched you pick the dandelions and my reaction when one wilted in my hand. You told me that chocolate can’t wilt,” he laughed lightly. “I never could bring myself to eat it. It was the first gift I had gotten from you that didn’t wilt,” he smiled. That dandelion was always going to be the first. “Unfortunately, chocolate is still food, it didn’t survive as much as I wanted it to. I still have the stem in here somewhere,” he grinned a little.

“I remember that,” she chuckled a little. She used a pipe cleaner and some fake ivy leaves from a fake plant at school to make it with some foil and colored plastic wrap around two Hershey Kisses.

Reaper chuckled a bit as he gently picked up one of the fragile origami flowers. “Then you started to expand your artistic range,” he grinned. “You were obsessed with making these flowers once you learned how,” he laughed. “You gave so many to me, I couldn’t store them all. I told you one was enough, but you said,”

“But you can’t have a garden with just one flower,” she remembered, glancing into the box. Underneath a multitude of different sized origami flowers, she saw the old notebook paper she used… she drew daisies and other simple flowers on them and used thread to go around the pencil drawing, coloring the lines and “sewing” the flower. All the paper showed its age. It didn’t seem so long ago, she was still in her thirties physically… “I really made it my life to make you all the flowers I could, didn’t I?”

“You did,” he smiled. “And these are far more special to me. You’re my little girl, Light. Life might have made me an eternal flower, and I’m grateful for it, it means a lot to me. But do you know how often I would complain to her?” he chuckled a little. “You… you just picked it up and started showering me with flowers the second you thought I liked something. You did it out of the kindness of your heart, you didn’t even know me at the time. These flowers are the most precious things to me because just as the real thing, they won’t last forever. They won’t wilt to my touch, but time will eventually take them from me… and at least with these, I can try and keep them safe. I can tend to my garden, somehow, even if I can’t show it off.”

Jewel couldn’t stop the tears that filled her eyes as he spoke. Reaper was always the one who supported her growing up. Other than her grandparents, he was the one who was there. He cared, he visited, he was always an ear for her, and he did what he could when he couldn’t be a literal shoulder to cry on. It had been a long time since she thought about those times, even if they were always in the back of her mind. To literally see how much care he put into preserving her childhood gifts to him…

“Dad,” she sniffled, “I need you to do something for me.”

“What is it, little light?”

“I need you to work with Uncle Raps, because damn it, I just want to hug you,” she said as she wiped her eyes.

Seeing her cry like that brought tears to his sockets as well. He should have done so years ago… When he thought he lost her, he didn’t think there was a point… he was kicking himself for wasting time wallowing about her being gone. Time didn’t mean much to him as an immortal, but he was the one who adopted her… she had lived past her original life span, numerous times now. He couldn’t keep taking this for granted.

His hand trembled as he delicately put the flower back in its box before he wiped his sockets with the sleeve of his robe. “Don’t do that, you know I can’t stand to see you cry,” he tried to smile, but he couldn’t help himself. He couldn’t help her when she cried. A joke didn’t always work, she was a pretty physical person. Always had been. Touch was how she developed her empathy. Most people, humans, and monsters, forget how powerful a touch could be… he had forgotten…

“Then learn. Because I can’t learn that trick you’d do with me. My magic isn’t like that.”

“You always sell yourself short,” Reaper smiled softly at her. “Tell ya what. I’ll learn with Paps while you try and learn with your friends. I’d teach you but I might be using all my spare time,” he chuckled nervously.

Jewel couldn’t help but laugh a little, wiping her eyes again. “S’a deal, Dad.”

“Good,” he smiled a little, taking a breath and making sure his own tears were stilled. He put the lockbox away. “Now, dry those tears,” he said as he turned back to her. “I have another surprise for you.”

She rose a brow but wiped what moisture that was left in her eyes away. “Another surprise? What, did you bake or something?”

“Heh, very funny,” he dryly laughed, “No, but you have to see it. I was going to bring it out myself, but Paps got worried about you. He’s waiting with it in the living room.”

Jewel was utterly confused, but she got up and left the room, Reaper not far behind her. He wasn’t going to miss her reaction for this. In fact, he teleported ahead of her so he could get a good shot with his phone. He loved the camera on these things.

When she came down the hall, time seemed to freeze. Blue eyes met wide black sockets with a single glowing eyelight. Wearing a grey onesie with a hood that matched Reaper’s, the tiny baby looked up from his spot on Raps’ lap and held a wide smile as he looked up at her, a babbling giggle escaping his tiny mouth.

“Oh. My. Gosh! What a cutie!” Jewel squealed as she went over to the tiny skeleton.

“Go on, he’s got no real magic yet,” Raps grinned as he held up the little baby to her.

Jewel took the baby from her uncle. He squirmed a little but he stared up at her with his one big curious eye before reaching up for her hair, and pulling. “Ow, got a grip there little dude,” she grinned down at him. It didn’t really hurt, but the “ow” did make the tiny baby stop for a second.

“You are just the cutest thing,” she grinned as she tickled his ribs, making him squeal out in delight.

Reaper felt his soul swell up, taking a multitude of photos. He just couldn’t help himself. He finally stopped just long enough to look over without the camera screen, and his grin just grew. “I’m glad you think so,” he explained, “because that’s your little brother.”

Jewel’s head snapped up and she looked at Reaper with wide eyes. “W-wait, what? You…”

“Yes, yes, I’ve heard it already, more than I’d like to admit,” he sweated a little. “Death creating life, I get it.”

“N-no, I mean… who? Life? I thought even her magic couldn’t stop yours.”

Reaper blinked but smiled at his daughter. “You’ll see. I was going to introduce you after lunch. Figured you’d want to get as many baby cuddles in as you could. You were always a sucker with kids, and from what I saw the other day, that hasn’t changed.”

Jewel laughed a little as she looked down at the little bundle of joy in her arms. “Yeah, I don’t think that part of me ever will,” she smiled down at the tiny baby, extending her finger to him and he happily grabbed it, waving it around. “What’s his name?”

“Goth,” Reaper chuckled a little awkwardness to his tone. “It’s… kind of a mash between mine and my mate’s name.”

“You mean the Death version anyway.”

“Yeah,” he chuckled a little.

“Can you… I mean, he’s yours but…”

“Yeah, he’s my boy, he’s immune to the death aura. We won’t know if he’ll take after me or not until he’s older. We’ll have to cross that bridge when we come to it.”

“If he does, fear not! I, the Great Papyrus, will teach him how to restrain his aura from the start. He will not be taking after his lazy father,” he narrowed his eyes at Reaper, who chuckled.

Jewel laughed a little before looking down at her little brother. “How old is he?”

“Seven months, just about,” Reaper smiled.

“You know this just raises all the questions about how skeletons have kids for me now, right?”

The God of Death’s face paled a little further as a blush dusted his cheekbones. “I… didn’t ever think I’d be having that talk with you…. let alone at your age,” he commented awkwardly.

“Well, excuse me, dad,” she laughed, teasingly, “I’m hardly a monster. I can easily return the favor with the human birds and bees talk.”

“Nope, I’m good,” he sweated, backing out of this conversation.

Raps, on the other hand, tilted his head. “How do humans—”

“Nope!” Reaper exclaimed. “It’s lunchtime, no more of this talk!”

Raps and Jewel laughed as they watched the God of Death exit the living room and head directly into the kitchen.

“Don’t worry, Uncle Raps. I’ll explain it later.”

“Thank you, dear. If he doesn’t, I’ll also try and explain our version. But when the little one is down for a nap.”


End file.
